Nike's Stock Price Falls to Its Lowest Level in 12 Years

I used to buy Nikes exclusively. I knew my size in them and they fit right. No "in between sizes" for me.

And then they started the unending woke bullshit.

Dropped them like a bad habit. And it turns out that Asics and New Balance also fit me right. Oh, and also, that all of the innovations that Nike used to brag about like waffle soles and gel heel-cushions was now absolutely bog-standard sneaker tech that everyone utilized.

I wouldn't have discovered that, but Nike just kept pushing and pushing and letting me know they didn't want my patronage. So I found out that other companies made equivalents of Nikes but without all the fucking shitty attitude.

Seems like a lot of people had the same feeling.

From Colin Kaepernick to Dylan Mulvaney, Nike's decade of left-wing activism has finally caught up to it

Nike shoes and apparel once dominated cultural relevance, but the company's stock is now at a 12-year low

Nike spent much of the past decade making left-wing politics part of its brand and the company's stock hit a 12-year low this week.

Before we get into that, we should acknowledge that the "social justice" messaging isn't the only reason the company is struggling. Nike is losing ground to newer competitors, its products haven't created the same excitement and consumers aren't exactly eager to pay more for sneakers right now.

Still, it's hard not to notice what Nike has been doing while its business has sputtered: picking fights over politics, race, patriotism, transgenderism and DEI.

From Colin Kaepernick to the Betsy Ross flag, Dylan Mulvaney and a study involving "transgender" youth athletes that Nike quietly backed away from after OutKick exposed it, the company has built an impressive record of left-wing corporate activism.

In February 2026, it added an EEOC investigation into alleged race discrimination against white employees and job applicants to the list.

Nike wanted to be more than a shoe company. Mission accomplished.

Nike made its choice clear in 2018, when it put former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick at the center of its 30th-anniversary "Just Do It" campaign.

Kaepernick, of course, became a national political figure after sitting, and later kneeling, during the national anthem because he said he refused to show pride in a flag for a country that "oppresses black people and people of color."

He specifically cited "police brutality" and later wore socks to an NFL practice depicting police officers as pigs and showed support for Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.

Nike decided he was the perfect guy to launch a campaign with the slogan, "Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything."

At that point, Nike wasn't simply sponsoring a former NFL quarterback. It was elevating the most divisive figure in American sports at the time and daring consumers to take a side.

Some did. Nike received plenty of backlash, including videos of customers burning products or cutting the swooshes off their socks. But the company also received glowing coverage from corporate-media types who loved the idea of a massive American brand embracing extreme left-wing political messaging.

Nike didn't back away from the Kaepernick experiment, either.

The following summer, it pulled a Fourth of July-themed Air Max sneaker featuring the Betsy Ross flag after Kaepernick reportedly objected to the design. Nike said it halted distribution because of concerns the shoe could "unintentionally offend."

Think about that for a second. A company built around American athletes decided that a sneaker featuring the flag associated with the country's founding was too offensive to sell around Independence Day.

That was just the start, and I think I was still buying Nikes when this crap was going on. I wasn't happy about it, but whatever, I knew my size in Nike.

And then they started with the BLM shit. That's when I was done.

And then, of course, came Dylan Mulvaney.

This is where Nike's activism went from poor marketing tactics to something much more serious.

In April 2025, OutKick reported that evidence indicated Nike had helped fund a study involving "transgender" youth athletes as young as 12. The proposed research was designed to track athletic and physiological changes among young people undergoing so-called "gender-affirming care."

Researchers connected to the project said publicly that Nike had provided funding. Boston Children's Hospital magazine later described the research as being supported, in part, by Nike.

Nike initially would not answer OutKick's repeated questions. A company executive later said on background that the study "was never initialized" and was "not moving forward."

Then, trans-identifying researcher Joanna Harper, a male, said Nike had "pulled out" after "haters got wind of it."

So, which was it? Was the study never initialized, as Nike claimed? Or did Nike pull out after public pressure, as one of its researchers claimed?

Nike has never provided a clear public explanation that resolves that contradiction.

I didn't even know about that. (Or, if I knew, my nearly-29-year-old brain forgot about it.)

Nike's stock problems go well beyond its aggressive political messaging. But the company has spent years building a brand that often seemed more interested in impressing left-wing activists than connecting with consumers in middle America.

Corporate leftists defend turning their companies into leftwing propaganda outfits -- despite the fact that this is not the mission of the company, and not what shareholders buy stock for -- by claiming that this kind of leftwing political "goodwill" is a genuine intangible asset that justifies ignoring the company's chartered mission to pursue.

This has always been a lie. It has always been the case that they knew they were destroying shareholder value -- they just decided it was worth it to destroy shareholder value to push their personal fucked-up ideologies.

Now they're seeing proof -- they always knew this, but the proof makes it hard to defend against shareholder lawsuits -- that there's a lot of corporate badwill incurred in pushing an unpopular extremist ideology, too.

I don't think the shareholders alone should pay for the sins of the corporate officers. I sure wish there were some way to personally sue them for violating the corporate charter to become the Official Shoe of Antifa and BLM.

I guess the only penalty the ideologues will pay is losing out on future jobs -- but leftwing civilization-destroyers never pay that price, either. Communism, Inc. always has a safety-net job for them in a university or a leftwing taxpayer-grifting NGO.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 06:52 PM | Comments (228) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Democrat Presidential Hopeful Gavin Newsom Signs "Stop Nick Shirley Act" Into Law to Strip Conservatives of Free Speech and Cover Up Democrat Fraud

No media is complaining about a Democrat criminalizing actual journalism.

They believe only Credentialed Guild Members, vetted for WrongThink and BadFacts, should have the right to commit journalism.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed California's controversial "Stop Nick Shirley Act" into law Saturday, which critics say will suppress investigative journalism in the state.

Newsom, however, won't be around to officially field any First Amendment court challenges of Assembly Bill 2624. The law does not take effect until October 1, 2027, nearly ten months after the northern California Democrat has left office because of term limits.

The bill expands the state's "Safe at Home" program to employees of nonprofits that purportedly help people navigating the U.S. immigration system.

What that could mean, critics say, is investigative reporters are banned from seeking to interview workers whose organizations are suspected of fraud.

Mia Bonta, the Almeda Democrat who introduced the bill back in February has rejected that interpretations, saying the law does not conflate legitimate journalism with the doxxing targeted by Safe at Home, the California Post reported.

"Our immigrant service providers are living in fear because of extremists looking to demonize the work that they do and the populations they serve," the assemblywoman said Saturday. "That is an intolerable consequence of the anti-immigrant rhetoric that exists right now."

The bill penalizes anyone who distributes or posts information or "images" of immigration workers it says "incites violence or threats" with penalties that range from $10,000 to $50,000 and sentences ranging from one year in jail to state prison time.

...

Shirley, an independent journalist and YouTuber, has made viral videos following immigrant workers and accusing them of fraud, particularly incidences involving day nonprofits in the Somali community in metropolitan Minneapolis.

The young journalist has criticized AB 2624, alleging it was created only after he "exposed widespread fraud in immigrant communities" in California and Minnesota.

Shirley had traveled to San Diego following the viral success of videos he produced about Minnesota early in the year.

Nick shirley
@nickshirleyy

California has officially signed the "Stop Nick Shirley Act" (AB 2624) into law. This bill was created only after I exposed widespread fraud in immigrant communities across America, specifically in California's Medicaid, nonprofits and other welfare programs funded by our tax dollars.

These politicians need the fraud to continue and they sadly use immigrants to do so often. They fund nonprofits and NGOs with hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars every year for immigration services, including free healthcare and have now made "immigration support service providers" essentially a protected class in California.

For example, if I film a hospice or a "learing center" with no patients receiving millions through Medicaid and the owner gives me a paper saying I cannot publish the video, I cannot publish it. If I publish it to expose them and they claim it caused them "fear" or a third party threatens them, I face a minimum $4,000 civil fine plus the legal fees of the individual or group suing me.

This bill was created by the Attorney General's wife and co-sponsored by CHIRLA, a nonprofit that has received over $80,000,000 in taxpayer dollars for "immigrant support services." Do you understand how this works yet? When the fraud is exposed, they create new laws to protect the fraudsters and penalize those who expose it.

By signing this bill, the Governor and California politicians expose themselves as the corrupt politicians they are. This is not the end, the fight has just begun. More to come soon, this is far from over.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 05:50 PM | Comments (190) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Scott Bessent Announces He Is Tightening the Screws Not Just on Iran But On Its Trading Partners

JusttheNews:

Bessent unveils 'Operation Economic Outcast' sanctions targeting Iranian regime



The measures, which the Treasury Secretary first teased last week, are designed to punish "enablers" of Iran that purchase its oil and facilitate financial flows.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Monday a new raft of sanctions targeting the Iranian regime dubbed "Operation Economic Outcast," which he compared to the historic D-Day landings during World War II.

"Iran now faces a very clear choice, with only two paths before them: complete global isolation and a subsistence economy, or a path back to normalcy with an opportunity to rejoin the global economy," Bessent told reporters at a 1:00 PM press conference.

These new measures are designed to ramp up pressure on Iran's "enablers," which Bessent has called out for purchasing Iran's petroleum products, allowing their financial systems and banks to facilitate transfers of Iranian funds, and allowing Iran's shadow fleet to transfer oil products in their territorial waters. Bessent and President Donald Trump indicated last week that the United States planned to shift to a comprehensive economic blockade of the Islamic Republic, hoping to strangle the regime by cutting off its economic lifelines.

"We are enforcing a zero leakage approach. There will be no minimal breathing space for the regime to rebuild its capacity to inflict terror against America and the world," the secretary said. "The final refuge of this regime is the mistaken conclusion of nations that still finance the Iranian threat in the hopes of evading it. It is no longer acceptable to operate in the gray spaces of this conflict. Countries cannot claim they are blind to enabling this activity."

The sanctions, Bessent said, are designed to target five of Iran's lifelines during the conflict: "digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping."

The Treasury Department will sanction "over 60 entities, individuals, and vessels" globally that officials believe enable Iran to purchase nuclear and missile technology, carry out cyber operations, and allow it to generate oil revenue.

...

China has purchased the vast majority of Iranian oil for years, even while its exports are under international sanctions. Chinese banks and front companies help Iran with oil transactions to avoid the sanctions and operate ships in a shadow fleet to transport the sanctioned oil, according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. China has also sold Iran the technology and inputs required to construct its fleet of attack drones and missiles.

Lee Smith wonders if Bessent and Trump really mean it -- are they actually going to punish Turkey and China for trading with Iran?

Lee Smith
@LeeSmithDC

2h

It would be great if Trump admin targets Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Russia and especially China for Iran dealings. But since that's very unlikely, what's really happening here?

Trump is threatening an "Economic D-Day" and says Iran is collapsing.

On social media, Trump posted "Iran is completely collapsing" hours after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in a column for the Financial Times, declared that an "economic D-Day" had begun against Tehran and warned that any country that continued to enable the Islamic Republic would become a "global pariah".

Bessent also claimed on X that the US had "dismantled Iran's military capabilities, destroyed nearly 100 percent of its military factories, and buried its nuclear programme".

Meanwhile, the US is escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz and a fair amount of oil is flowing. Though Iranian attacks have definitely slowed the flow.

The U.S. military has quietly established a shipping corridor in and out of the Strait of Hormuz to transport millions of barrels of oil each day -- a notable success even as the broader war remains at a stalemate, two U.S. officials told Axios.

Under the operation, which has been underway for the last several weeks, 15--20 tankers have entered and exited the strait each night through a southern channel along the coast of Oman.
About 10 million barrels of oil a day -- roughly half the pre-war volume -- are being transported out of the strait and injected into the global energy market, the officials said.

Why it matters: The U.S.-led operation is mitigating one of the most painful aspects of the war: the disruption to oil supplies that sent crude prices soaring. While the amount of oil coming out of the strait is still below pre-war levels, it is making a discernible difference in global supplies, officials say.

If you wondered why the media was pushing the new PsyOp -- we can't have sailors stationed on aircraft carriers for months at a time, sailors didn't sign up for the Navy to spend months aboard warships! -- this is why. It's working, so the Communist-Islamist propaganda machine goes to work to convince Americans to just give up and let Iran have its nuclear bombs.

Here's CNN's efforts to aid and abet the Iranian terror regime. It's paylocked, so here's a digest:

A CNN report detailed severe supply shortages and daily hardships--including a lack of fresh food and milk--aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln during its record-breaking deployment in the Middle East

.Deployment Hardships

Record Time at Sea: The ship spent over 250 consecutive days deployed without a port call, straining both the crew and supplies.

Supply Disruptions: Combat actions and regional supply chain damage in the Middle East forced lengthy detours for resupply.

Rations and Shortages: Crew members and their families reported limited food options, smaller portions, and a lack of basic items like fresh milk, soap, and toothpaste.

Official Response

Government Denials: President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth dismissed the reports of poor living conditions and food shortages as "fake news" or misrepresented.

Congressional Concern: Lawmakers pressed the Pentagon for answers regarding the crew's well-being and mental health support.

There are a few points here: Yes, spending 250 days at sea is a hardship. On the other hand, this is a war, and while I appreciate servicemen experience hardships during war, I can't say that not having fresh milk, just the powdered kind, is a hardship enough that we should take a $13 billion aircraft carrier out of the fight.

Also, so I never served in the military, but one thing I've picked up from movies, reading, and hearing veterans talk, is that military people complain about their conditions a lot. They have a fair amount to complain about, and complaining is their outlet. Complaining is a sport in the military, just like jerking off guys for $15 a man is a sport for garrett.

We've never changed war policy over complaints about not having fresh milk before.

CNN wants to institute this as a new National Imperative, because they're on the other side and always have been. Same as they used to track casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan when Bush was president and then immediately stopped tracking them with Captain Cocksucker became president.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 04:43 PM | Comments (357) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Enes Kantor Ejected from WNBA Game for Wearing a Shirt Defining Woman as an Adult Human Female; Angel Reece Freaks Out Over Another Green Dildo Attack

Regarding the green dildoes:

The women melting down and claiming to be "assaulted" over seeing a fake penis in a public place are the exact same women telling little girls they shouldn't be bothered to see a real penis in the confined space of a changing room or spa.

Are they offended by the green dildoes? Given that 80-90% of the WNBA is lesbian, they could only be "offended" in a Crocodile Dundeean sense: "That's not a dildo. This is a dildo."

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 03:36 PM | Comments (390) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Arbitration Board Says That Racist Grifter Karen Attiah Was Wrongly Fired for Making Up Fake Racist Quotes "by" Charlie Kirk and Celebrating His Murder; Hasan Piker Mocks Kirk's Murder in Hate Rally

Karen Attiah is a degenerate, unqualified DEI hire formerly, and now presently, employed by the Washington Post to write the same three columns about racism, colonialism, "Islamaphobia" and sexism over and over again while hammering checks.

After she made up fake quotes by Charlie Kirk and used them as a predicate for celebrating his murder, the incoming less-leftwing management of the Washington Post fired her.

She sued, which invoked an arbitration over the firing. (Which was specified in her contract, it seems.)

The arbitrator decided that it's no big deal for a "journalist" to make up quotes and justify political assassination of conservatives and ordered her to be rehired and be paid for the year she had off.

An arbitrator has ordered the Washington Post to rehire Karen Attiah, the opinion columnist who was fired last September after she blasted Charlie Kirk as "a white man that espoused violence" the day of his brutal assassination.

In a written decision Thursday, arbitrator Sarah Miller Espinosa said WaPo "did not have good and sufficient cause" to fire the scribe and "violated" its labor agreement with the controversial columnist.

Espinosa ordered the legacy newspaper to compensate Attiah with back pay and lost benefits.

"This decision confirms what we've said from the start: I was doing my job as an opinion journalist, and doing that job is not misconduct," Attiah told The Post in a statement, adding that she is "relieved to finally have that record set straight."

She added that she hopes her win "sends a message to journalists and media institutions everywhere that freedom of expression is always worth fighting for."

Really? Is conservatives' free speech worth fighting for?

If Scott Jennings glorifies violence against leftists, will you fight for his right to agitate for assassination while collecting a corporate check, too?

...

The decision -- which is binding, according to WaPo's labor agreement -- caps off a yearlong battle after Attiah argued a slew of controversial social media posts she fired off the day of Kirk's shocking killing did not violate company policy.

On Sept. 10, 2025, Attiah wrote in a Bluesky post: "Part of what keeps America so violent is the insistence that people perform care, empty goodness and absolution for white men that espouse hatred and violence."

In another post that day, she wrote: "Refusing to tear my clothes and smear ashes on my face in performative mourning for a white man that espoused violence is ... not the same as violence."

...

Wayne Connell, WaPo's chief HR officer, wrote that Attiah's Bluesky posts had violated the company's social media policies, harmed "the integrity of our organization" and potentially endangered "the physical safety of our staff."

...

Attiah's case against the WaPo went to arbitration in June and included testimony from her, O'Neal and Connell. Attiah was represented by lawyers from Democracy Defenders Action, a nonprofit co-founded by lawyer Norman Eisen, and the Washington-Baltimore News Guild.

Norman Eisen is the guy behind the Infinite Lawfare against Trump.

Eisen, one of Attiah's lawyers, called the decision "a thunderous victory for Karen Attiah, an award-winning journalist fired for doing her job, over Bezos' Washington Post."

Am I allowed to justify violence against Normal Eisen or is that an offense worthy of cancellation? I assume it's the latter, right?

Meanwhile, Gay Islamist Race Hustler and assassination-agitator Hasan Piker is on some kind of gay tour and led his crowd in cheering the murder of Charlie Kirk.

We have seen protesters on the left around the country mocking the assassination of Charlie Kirk, even reenacting his murder. Hate traffickers like Jennifer Welch have even justified his assassination. It is all shocking and depressing, but none reached the level of Hasan Piker leading a huge crowd in mocking Kirk and his faith. Before he was murdered, Kirk debated Piker and called him a "socialist hypocrite." What is shocking is not the utter depravity and cruelty of Piker, but the ecstasy of the crowd in relishing the death of someone with opposing views. It is part of the conditioning in an "age of rage."

In the video, Piker leads the crowd in the meme song "We Are Charlie Kirk" at a stop of his "Fear& LIVE" tour, including such lines as "We are Charlie Kirk, we carry the flame. We'll fight for the Gospel, we'll honor his name." His co-hosts and the crowd seem to be laughing with joy.

Joining him at this hatefest at the Golden Gate Theatre in San Francisco on August 21 were reportedly Will Neff, QTCinderella, and AustinShow.

Hasan is wearing his now-signature Mao jacket as the young crowd and his co-hosts laugh hysterically. It is the very essence of this movement to desensitize people, particularly young people, to violence and hate.

In Rage and the Republic, I wrote about this national ragefest. It allows people to hate completely and without thought to the humanity of those being hurt. What people will not admit is that they like it. Rage is addictive, and it is contagious. Just look at the crowd in San Francisco, and you will see the addictive quality of uncut, undiluted hate:

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 02:25 PM | Comments (304) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Morocco: Now That We've Sent Criminals to Invade Your Country, We Are Prepared to Negotiate Your Surrender of the Conquered Territory

NEXTA
@nexta_tv

Morocco has made territorial claims against Spain

Moroccan Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi said Rabat maintains "historical and geographical rights" to the cities of Ceuta and Melilla and wants to create a special mechanism with Madrid for negotiations.

He described their incorporation into the kingdom as Morocco's ultimate goal.

Spain categorically rejected these demands, stating that Ceuta and Melilla are part of its territory.

Morocco has claimed both cities since gaining independence in 1956. Melilla has belonged to Spain for more than 500 years, while Ceuta has been Spanish for more than 400 years.

The issue has flared up again because of the migration crisis in Ceuta, where tens of thousands of illegal migrants crossed from Moroccan territory at the end of July.

Gavin McInnes
@Gavin_McInnes

Ah, so it WAS an invasion. Got it.

Via Instapundit, where Stephen Green wonders if a demand for Andalusia -- the former Caliphate in Spain -- is next.

Thanks to Robert.

Related flashback: In February, Joe Biden claimed that he had ended the mass illegal immigration he... inherited from Trump.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 01:20 PM | Comments (256) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Real Headline: "WNBA team reveals new 'non-binary' turtle mascot to taunt Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham"

Is the WNBA okay?

If you're wondering "How is that even a turtle?," there is a shell you can barely see on its back like the shield of Captain Trans America.

As many are asking: Isn't this grooming? Yet another clear attempt to appeal to childish minds.

The Toronto Tempo debuted a new "non-binary" mascot ahead of their WNBA matchup with the Indiana Fever in an apparent swipe at controversial star Sophie Cunningham.

The Tempo revealed Dez, a butch, non-binary Borealis Blue Snapping Turtle who uses she/they pronouns and "has a fondness for soft shell tacos," the team said in an Tuesday announcement unveiling the new mascot.

Sometimes I make up fake quotes and stick them in the quote box as a joke.

This is not one of those times. This is real.

Dez also has a partner in crime, anthropomorphic arctic hare named Dot who uses standard she/her pronouns.

Dez is a Taurus, the team made sure to include in its announcement.

It joins the Seattle Storm's Doppler as the only two non-binary mascots in the WNBA.

The Tempo made a point to announce the new, queer turtle totem during their home game against the Indiana Fever -- and their guard Cunningham who has been outspoken about defending girls and women's sports from transgender athletes.

The Fever beat the Tempo, 101-95.

Cunningham scored 13 points on 3-of-4 shooting, going 3-for-3 from behind the arc while snatching two rebounds and dishing out two more assists.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 12:10 PM | Comments (337) | Trackbacks (Suck)

MORNING RANT: The Data Center Wars - A Massive Proposed Data Center in Texas Drops Request for Tax Abatements

There is an intense political battle about data centers right now, with Democrats and their media allies lining up in opposition to their construction, while President Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance promote this industrial building boom and its importance to the country. Vance does an excellent job explaining that America needs to be at the forefront of the technology revolution, and that data centers that produce their own electricity make great neighbors, without impacting electricity rates.

I, too, strongly endorse the construction of privately-funded data centers, powered by on-site plants generating electricity from natural gas, but as I’ve previously written, ”I do not support the construction of data centers for which tax abatements, incentive payments, and subsidized utilities must be paid by taxpayers. In the raging battle between pro-data center and anti-data center forces, the two sides may not even be talking about the same thing. It is understandable that many of those who oppose data centers are skeptical, given the horrendous track record of corporate welfare, corporate cronyism, and taxpayer-funded industrial boondoggles they’ve been forced to pay for.”

If taxpayers feel there is a binary choice between either banning economic progress, like several blue states have done with data centers, or subsidizing it, like Republican elected officials reflexively do, you can expect exhausted taxpayers to be opposed to such “economic development.” The message seems to be getting through to data center developers that the era of taxpayer-subsidized industrial development has played out. Rather than make demands on communities, the developers are starting to realize they need to promise to improve the communities where they’ll be building, without subsidization.

Near Austin, in Bastrop County, Texas, a massive (2,800 acre) proposed data center faced strong community opposition because it sought not only a 100% tax abatement from property taxes, but it also sought an abatement from emergency services taxes too. The Pacifico Energy project sought to take services from the community through 2038 without paying any taxes for the services they’d be using.

The message is finally getting through…

“Bastrop County Data Center Developer Drops Tax Break Requests, Says It Will Pay Full Property Taxes” [KVUE – 08/20/2026]

Pacifico Energy told KVUE it made the decision after hearing concerns from residents. “We withdrew our Chapter 312 and JETI applications because we heard the community clearly,” the company said in a statement. “The Cedar Creek Campus is not seeking any tax incentives and will pay its property taxes in full, like any other taxpayer in Bastrop County.”

The change was welcomed by some residents who have opposed the project. Josh Mincher, a Red Rock resident, said taxes were one of the community's primary concerns.

This is great news – just build it without taxpayer subsidization. In addition, Pacifico will build its own natural-gas fired electricity generating plant on the site.

Another issue facing data center developers is the enmity that the tech industry has earned. During the great awokening, the tech bros were happy to be a censor of forbidden opinions while jamming the woke agenda down our throats. Tech has subsequently embraced an unpatriotic purging of American labor to be replaced by cheap foreign labor, either by offshoring, or by importing foreign H-1B labor. On top of that, many industry leaders engaged in naïve and destructive crowing about how AI will eliminate millions of jobs. They dug themselves a deep hole.

But what is great is that the tech industry has now come to realize that despite their “clean energy” posturing during peak-woke, there is no way to power their future without abundant, reliable energy that can only be provided by fossil fuels or nuclear energy. I welcome their rejection of green energy, the core tenet of the Church of Climate.

I’m excited for the tech industry to be my ally in the war on the globalist climate cult, and this is a start. In addition, if “my team” is going to support tech building data centers, while also getting reliable electricity from fossil fuels, my team will also have leverage to make tech start being better corporate citizens who prioritize America and fellow Americans.

Returning to the Pacifico Energy data center in Texas, I applaud the local residents for being opposed to subsidizing it, and I applaud Pacifico for proceeding without subsidization, while also building a new power plant powered by fossil fuels.

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM | Comments (226) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Mid-Morning Art Thread

Podmoskovnaya youth. Ligachevo
Konstantin Yuon

I can't get past the reality of this artist...he embraced the revolution and communism, and was part of the official art of the Soviet Union.

Whether that was out of necessity or belief is irrelevant. Too many artists fought against it to allow this man any leeway.

Posted by: CBD at 09:30 AM | Comments (288) | Trackbacks (Suck)

The Morning Report — 8/ 24 /26

Good morning kids. Hope you all had a nice, relaxing weekend but let's jump right in, shall we? All I have to say is this greasy bastard!

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed California’s controversial “Stop Nick Shirley Act” into law Saturday, which critics say will suppress investigative journalism in the state.
Newsom, however, won’t be around to officially field any First Amendment court challenges of Assembly Bill 2624. The law does not take effect until October 1, 2027, nearly ten months after the northern California Democrat has left office because of term limits. The bill expands the state’s “Safe at Home” program to employees of nonprofits that purportedly help people navigating the U.S. immigration system.
What that could mean, critics say, is investigative reporters are banned from seeking to interview workers whose organizations are suspected of fraud. Mia Bonta, the Almeda Democrat who introduced the bill back in February has rejected that interpretations, saying the law does not conflate legitimate journalism with the doxxing targeted by Safe at Home, the California Post reported. . .
. . . Critics, like Republican Assemblyman Carl DeMaio from San Diego have countered that the measure is simply meant to intimidate people “trying to shine light on bad behavior.” DeMaio coined the nicknamed the law the “Stop Nick Shirley Act.”
. . . Shirley, an independent journalist and YouTuber, has made viral videos following immigrant workers and accusing them of fraud, particularly incidences involving day nonprofits in the Somali community in metropolitan Minneapolis. . .
The young journalist has criticized AB 2624, alleging it was created only after he “exposed widespread fraud in immigrant communities” in California and Minnesota.

God bless Nick Shirley and anyone and everyone like him, like James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles of Project Veritas, for they are the real journalists and patriots exposing the grift and graft that are robbing the taxpayer and treasury blind while empowering scum like Newsom and funding his and his allies to the tune of billions as they work to enrich themselves while enslaving America and destroying the very foundations of our republic. It is the legacy "mainstream media" whose goal is to perpetuate the myths and lies of Newsom et al, as a de facto Leftist/Globalist ministry of propaganda, in service to our destruction. Trust in them has absolutely cratered year after year over the past decade. When the editorial boards of the NY Times and Washington Post along with CNN and MSNOW(NSDAP) finally go dark, the incandescent light of truth shall be a sight for sore eyes, and that is a light that has been lit by Nick Shirley, and long may it shine, Amen!

In a not necessarily unrelated item we have this bit of good news:

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) enrollment dropped by more than 13 percent in just one year. . .

This reduction follows the introduction of stricter requirements. Under new federal rules, adults aged between 55 and 64 and parents of children aged between 14 and 17 must now meet work, volunteer, or education requirements in order to qualify for the food stamps program. Specifically, new data released this week revealed that enrollment fell from 42.2 million in May 2025 to 36.6 million in May this year, much faster than anticipated . .

. . . The rapid decline in SNAP enrollment suggests that the President’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act and fraud crackdown are achieving their aim of reducing welfare reliance. Waste, fraud, and abuse have become significant problems costing the government immense sums of money. In one high-profile case, reported back in March, a Haitian man admitted to $7.6 million in SNAP fraud committed through his retail store in Boston, Massachusetts. Another bust earlier this year implicated more than 20 retailers in Ohio. In Minnesota, a woman admitted to over $300,000 in SNAP fraud through illegally obtained Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards.

This is certainly not necessarily Nick Shirley's doing but no doubt the shining of the light certainly makes the efforts of President Trump, Musk and DOGE that much more effective and popular, at least among real actual Americans and Taxpayers.

An ever expanding welfare state and concomitant loss of freedom and liberty via dependency by more and more citizens (and perhaps an equal or even greater number of non-citizens and amnetized migrants/immigrants as exposed by Nick Shirley in Minnesota, California and elsewhere) is how the Democrat/Left gains and expands its power.

In conclusion, while the causes of the MAGA and DSA populist movements are similar, thus allowing for rare and specific instances of agreement, the overarching differences between their agendas are as stark and irreconcilable as their respective views of America and the power of its government.

A reformist MAGA seeks to “drain the swamp” to “make America great again.”

A radical DSA seeks to empower government to “flood the zone” to create a socialist hellscape.

And a frustrated electorate just wants practical results that work for them.

Students of history know of the failures and horrors of socialism. But they also know that in trying times, the temptation to trade freedom for “free stuff” can be powerful.

And that the DSA is banking on it.

While certain elements of the establishment Democrat Party are trying to distance themselves from the DSA, others are riding the back of the Tiger thinking they can go all the way to power and immortality, or be eaten last.

Perhaps this is Newsom's logic as he is or at least was a major, if not "THE" contender to beat for the 2028 presidential nomination. I guess, we'll just have to wait and see.

Speaking of Democrat Socialites, once again our blackened eyes are turned to Michiganistan...

PETA knows how to find a villain. When Kristi Noem, then South Dakota governor and later a member of the Trump administration, revealed in 2024 that she had shot her 14-month-old dog Cricket, PETA went straight for her throat.

The group said Americans would consider Noem a "psychotic loony." It later sold a Halloween costume depicting Noem as a "Puppy Killer."
Nobody had to search for PETA's position. Subtlety had left the building.
Then came Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed, Michigan's Democrat nominee for the Senate.
El-Sayed oversaw Detroit Animal Control for about 16 months while serving as Detroit health director. He was reported to have had more than 4,000 dogs and cats euthanized during his tenure, although the number during his actual period of oversight appears to have been closer to 1,900. . .

. . . But principles aren't worth much when their volume changes depending on whose name is attached to the controversy.
Kristi Noem got "psychotic and loony." Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed got a lecture about breeders.
People can decide for themselves whether politics had anything to do with it. PETA made sure they have plenty of evidence to consider.

Well, once President/Mullah El-Sayed starts euthanizing Jews there will be no criticism since per Newsom's law along with the Koran, that will be illegal and get one arrested, "inshallah!"

Gevalt.
Have a good day,

Posted by: J.J. Sefton at 07:15 AM | Comments (393) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Daily Tech News 24 August 2026

Top Story

• The that guy who thought it would be a fine jape to hand Border Patrol a "duress password" making his phone wipe itself rather than unlocking is facing felony charges. (Law Commentary)
  
  His lawyers say that the CBP were unconstitutionally using their clients past criminality as a pretext to search for his present criminality. Uh, not admitting that either of those occurred.
  
  
  

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:35 AM | Comments (112) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Sunday Overnight Open Thread - August 23, 2026 [Doof]

Howdy Hordelings! Welcome to the Sunday ONT. A bit in the style of Ace's weekday Cafe threads tonight. Open thread, as always. Fashion and music, as always. What's on YOUR mind tonight?

[Top photo: The Wave - Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness, Arizona]

Posted by: Open Blogger at 10:00 PM | Comments (391) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Gun Thread: Next To Last August 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 the Next To Last August Edition? Next week we have the final August edition and then start on September editions! See how that works? All that notwithstanding, its going to be a quick one tonight, so apologies in advance.

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 (228) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Food Thread: Oyster? I hardly Know Her!

I am second to none in my disgust with all things Canadian. The people, the country, the crap maple syrup, the ridiculous ersatz French they pretend to speak, the poutine, and on and on. It is an unimportant place with delusions of grandeur!

Except...those oysters are from Canada; B.C. to be precise, and maybe that makes it better. I don't know and I don't care. Because they were spectacular.

And that is maddening! I don't want to like anything from America's hat. They are, by and large, a useless and weak people who are content to be the serfs for their increasingly totalitarian government.

But...damn. They were mighty tasty.

Posted by: CBD at 04:00 PM | Comments (238) | Trackbacks (Suck)

First World Problems...

Power in but no power out suggests to even the most incompetent homeowner that the controller is shot. And that requires a replacement! The fancy new one in the photo even has a humidity gauge, so the attic vent fan will turn on when the mice up there are uncomfortable, not just hot!

But attics tend to be at the top of most houses...up a flight of stairs and some sort of magic carpet to get into the attic itself. And breaker panels tend to be in basements (at least around here), and basements tend to be at the bottom of most houses... DOWN a flight of stairs.

Yes, that adds up to two flights plus a ladder and an awkward climb into the attic.

And it gets worse! Most electricians and sane people suggest turning off the power before working with household power. Supposedly 120 volts AC at 60 Hz and a bunch of amps does not play well with the human body, in particular the bunch of small muscles called the heart.

Probably just a bunch of internet know-it-alls, but they might be on to something.

So how to figure out which breaker controls the fan? What? No, they are not labeled. At least not well enough. So I can buy a circuit breaker finder, which means I can clip it onto the power feeding the fan, then check each breaker until the magic wand goes beep. Or ... and this is less exciting ... I can go back and forth and up and down 27 times, turning off one unidentified breaker at a time until I stumble on the correct one.

I am confident that I will never use the circuit breaker finder after this little project, but if I don't buy it, there will be a project in the next two weeks that will require it.

That is a fine example of Schrodinger's Homeowner's Paradox. The repair both exists and doesn't exist. But I will be in existential OCD agony until I find out!

Posted by: CBD at 02:00 PM | Comments (150) | Trackbacks (Suck)

The NeoCon Wet-Dream For Iran Is "Boots On The Ground."
Hell No! There Is A Better Way!

I have been consistent in my denunciation of the tired and discredited idea that American boots on the ground is a reasonable response to Iran's 47 year war against the West, in particular America and Israel.

Would it work? Probably, especially if it was run by war-fighting generals with a healthy disdain for our previous rules of engagement. A systematic campaign to destroy the IRGC, the Mullahs, and any Iranian armed forces that oppose the operation would be at least moderately successful. But we would lose men, and it just isn't worth it.

If the Iranian people want freedom from the Mullahcracy, they can fight for it themselves, with offshore assistance from us (and the Israelis). Will they die. Yes, in large numbers, but it is their country, and our responsibility ends with ending Iran's chokehold on 20% of the world's petroleum, and its obsessive drive to acquire and use nuclear weapons. That is why we are there. Not the freedom of the Iranian people, no matter how noble a goal it might be.

But it is entirely possible that we will drive the Mullahcracy to ground without having to resort to military efforts beyond the occasional swatting of their anti-ship capacity.

The global demand for petroleum has shrunk slightly, in part in response to the war, in part in response to Europe's insanity with respect to oil, and in part because of President Trump's focus on China's predatory trade policies.

Increased domestic production has contributed to the dampening of oil price shocks, and Venezuela's reentry into the global petroleum market has improved supplies.

Rerouted shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz has decreased Iran's ability to threaten shipping. They simply can't reach far enough to hit the southern portion of the strait.

And degraded Iranian military options because of a consistent and successful campaign to destroy their offensive capacity has decreased the probability of a successful strike on shipping or infrastructure.

Traffic in Strait of Hormuz skyrockets nearly 400%, as analysts say Iran's grip on critical waterway weakens

Iran appears to be losing its grip on the Strait of Hormuz while traffic through the critical waterway has exploded by nearly 400% over the last two weeks — as ships increasingly use a US-backed corridor to cross.

Nearly 200 ships navigated the strait last week, up from 150 the previous week and just 40 two weeks earlier, according to data from the UK Maritime Trade Operations Center.

The surge brings total traffic along the passage route to about 20% of pre-war levels, through which roughly 20% of the world’s seaborne oil flowed in peacetime.

That's a good start, and probably an underestimate of the total volume. Because the world has other options, Iran's power over world commerce has decreased, and will continue to decrease until the Strait of Hormuz is simply not important.

Add the economic sanctions being applied to Iran by our government, ably administered by Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, and we have a rational plan to destroy the 47-year-old dictatorship that has been the world's foremost supporter of militant Islam and its terror attacks. Of course Russia and China are working to subvert our efforts, by supplying arms, and in China's case by buying Iranian oil. But there just isn't enough being smuggled to them to make a dent in Iran's desperate need for cold hard cash!

It will take a long while, and there will be spasms of violence and destruction, but the arc of Iran's control over the Strait, and Iran's ability to pursue nuclear weapons is sinking.

All we need to do is stay the course, and don't declare a premature victory. That might be the toughest part of this whole effort! And yes, I am referring to President Trump and his deals!

Posted by: CBD at 12:00 PM | Comments (231) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Sunday Morning Book Thread - 8-23-2026 ["Perfessor" Squirrel]

(HT: Hour of the Wolf)

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 (not for the squeamish!). 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...(they grow faster than you do!)

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?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:00 AM | Comments (229) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Daily Tech News 23 August 2026

Top Story

• Never send a Link to do a Zelda's work: The LINK mission intended to boost the Swift Observatory into a higher orbit has itself spun out of control, leaving Swift to burn down, fall over, and sink into the swamp, by which we mean disintegrate upon re-entry and any surviving fragments fall harmlessly into the ocean and Canberra. (CNN)
  
  The loss is lessened slightly, perhaps, by the fact that Swift was launched with a planned operational lifetime of two years... In 2004.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:30 AM | Comments (241) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Saturday Night Club ONT - August 22, 2026 [Disco & Dino]

Welcome to Club ONT - a whelming collaboration of The Disco and The Dino.

Open thread - bar is open, too. Come in in, grab a drink or 2. Or 3. Keep it light and friendly. The moose is checking ID tonight, so please check in before entering.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:16 PM | Comments (522) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Hobby Thread - August 22, 2026 [TRex]

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread. For this week, the Wheel of Hobbies (TM) is feeling lucky and decided on a radio control theme for this Hobby Thread.

A what? A radio control hobby theme?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 05:30 PM | Comments (255) | Trackbacks (Suck)