There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "…truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity–it is simply true and that is the end of it" – Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” – Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
In the last half of Ephesians 4, the Apostle Paul gives Christians practical guidance on what it means to “put on the new self, created in the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (v. 24). He concludes his list of applications with a positive admonition regarding forgiveness. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (v. 32). The measure of the forgiveness that Christians owe to one another is the forgiveness that God has shown to us in Christ.
These words are not hard to understand. They are simply hard to do. Forgiveness is a specific act that grows out of a gracious disposition. It is a plant that springs out of the soil of kindness and tenderheartedness. To be kind is to treat people with compassion. It is an attribute of genuine love (1 Corinthians 13:4) and is characteristic of God, whose “kindness is meant to lead you to repentance” (Romans 2:4).
To be tenderhearted to others is to be gentle and welcoming to them. It is an idiomatic term that suggests enlarging your heart so that your sincere affection for someone becomes evident. To have a tender heart toward someone is to want what is best for them, to desire their welfare. Like kindness, tenderheartedness is characteristic of our Lord who will not break a bruised reed nor quench a smoldering wick (Isaiah 42:3-4).
It is no wonder, then, that Paul follows up his admonition in Ephesians 4:32 in the very next verse with “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children” (5:1). Neither is it surprising that he prefaces this admonition by telling Christians that we must put away “all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander” (4:31). Such bitter weeds pollute the soil and prevent forgiveness from sprouting.
By mortifying deadly vices and cultivating godly virtues, we become spiritually equipped to live in forgiveness, which is what we are commanded to do in v. 32. “Forgiving one another” includes specific, intentional decisions, but Paul here considers such decisions as an ongoing activity of the Christian life. We can sympathize with Peter’s question to Jesus, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” (Matthew 18:21). He probably thought he was being generous. But Jesus’ answer is the foundation of Paul’s admonition: “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times” (Matthew 18:22).
As children of the forgiving God, Christians must cultivate a lifestyle where forgiveness is the norm. As we seek to be kind and tenderhearted, we should stand ready to forgive and to forgive “as God in Christ” has forgiven us. That is the standard, the measure of our forgiveness. What did God’s forgiveness of us cost Him? The cross is the answer to that question. Then how far, at what cost, and how often should we forgive one another? Only as far as and to the same degree that God has forgiven us through the sufferings and death of Jesus.
Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken. (Isaiah 62:4)
“Forsaken” is a dreary word. It sounds like a knell. It is the record of sharpest sorrows and the prophecy of direst ills. An abyss of misery yawns in that word forsaken. Forsaken by one who pledges his honor! Forsaken by a friend so long tried and trusted! Forsaken by a dear relative! Forsaken by father and mother! Forsaken by all! This is woe indeed, and yet it may be patiently born if the Lord will take us up.
But what must it be to feel forsaken of God? Think of that bitterest of cries, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Have we ever in any degree tasted the wormwood and the gall of “forsaken” in that sense? If so, let us beseech our Lord to save us from any repetition of so unspeakable a sorrow. Oh, that such darkness may never return! Men in malice said of a saint, “God hath forsaken him; persecute and take him.” But it was always false. The Lord’s loving favor shall compel our cruel foes to eat their own words or, at least, to hold their tongues.
The reverse of all this is that superlative word Hephzibah “the Lord delighteth in thee.” This turns weeping into dancing. Let those who dreamed that they were forsaken hear the Lord say, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.”
“Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for He is our God and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care.” Psalm 95:6-7
Thoughts on today’s verse
Worship is more than our heart, soul, and words offered to God. It’s our posture. When we understand the grace he has given us to be called his children, what else can we do but bow down. We come to him as a conquering ruler in full submission, and he chooses to treat us tenderly, like a loving shepherd.
Prayer:
Pastor of my soul, I come to you seeking your protection and rest as one of your sheep, often harried and driven by life’s pressures and temptations. But I come to you, not demanding, but submitting myself to be used for your glory — not just today, but for the rest of my life. In Jesus I pray. Amen.
You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.” Psalm 27:8 ESV
A newborn’s eyes at birth are blurry. They must become accustomed to light and movement. Gradually their vision begins to focus on objects. Their little eyes begin to clear. Then they make their first real eye contact zeroing in on another set of eyes. Your eyes. Eventually the infant starts to seek your face, and the relationship journey begins.
This precious bundle takes comfort in connecting with you and being in your loving arms, like I take comfort in being in the loving arms of Jesus. I seek His face early in the morning, late in the evening, and troubling times throughout the day.
As Saul of Tarsus (later named Paul) walked toward Damascus his sight was struck by a blinding light. He lost his vision and was led by others into the city. God sent a believer named Ananias to Saul and he placed his hands over Saul’s eyes. Scales fell away from his eyes and he could see once again. Not only could he see with his eyes, but spiritually he could see more clearly, that the Lord that he had persecuted was indeed the Son of God. The Holy Spirit worked in his heart.
Whenever I seek the Lord’s face, He draws me in, into a circle of love, place of peace, and source of strength. I begin to see more clearly as if a warm, bright light shines all around me.
In the arms of Jesus I experience these things and much more. Assurance, trust, confidence in Him and increasing faith are mine. He will guide me to and through the next big thing in my life. Even if I’ve stepped away from Him I know I can return to Him at any time, and seek Him, the beautiful face of Jesus.
Israel-Christian Relations Are In Crisis At a time when Israeli society is experiencing the greatest internal contention in its history, there is another crisis brewing. Over the past few months, a series of events has combined to undermine the support of Israel’s closest friends, the Evangelical Christian community. The following examples are, sadly, only a sampling of what has hit the headlines. Back in March of this year, it was widely reported that a new law was under consideration in the Israeli legislature that would make it illegal for Christians to share their faith with non-Christians.
Northrop Grumman’s Phantom Laser Delivers Compact, Rugged, High-Energy Beam Weapon Source to Empower U.S. Tactical Capabilities Northrop Grumman Corporation has just equipped the U.S. military with Phantom, a compact-sized high-power laser beam source specially equipped for rapid deployment in tactical situations, the company announced this week. At just 12 cubic feet in size, Phantom, Northrop Grumman’s new 10-kilowatt laser, is tough enough to handle extreme environments, while being small enough to allow the laser’s deployment in even the most demanding combat situations.
“Game Of Thrones’ Kind Of Thing”: Tech Billionaires Buy 55,000 Acres Outside San Francisco To Start New City a group of Silicon Valley billionaires are behind the $800 million in land purchases, or about the size of two San Franciscos, around Travis Air Force Base in Solano County, California. the mysterious Flannery Associates, which has quietly amassed a staggering 55,000-acre farmland portfolio encircling three sides of the military base. The landowners weren’t previously known until now:
School Board Fires Satan-Worshipping Non-Binary Teacher A teacher at an Illinois elementary school was fired by the board after conservative influencer Libs of TikTok pointed out that the ‘non-binary’ person was also a Satan worshipper and had a history of bipolar disorder with mania and psychosis. The question remains, why did this person get hired as an elementary school teacher in the first place? And how many more are out there?
Nasa asteroid strike unleashes boulder storm ‘as deadly as Hiroshima’ A storm of boulders “as deadly as Hiroshima” was accidentally unleashed by Nasa during tests to change the trajectory of an asteroid, scientists have found. … Now astronomers have found that although the impact succeeded in knocking Dimorphos slightly off course, it also dislodged 37 boulders, which are currently zipping through space at 13,000mph. …a 15ft boulder hitting Earth would deliver as much energy as the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan
Leftist organization to haredi journalist: ‘Religion is stupid’ “Religion is stupid. There is no difference between the nonsense that you believe into those of the Christians and the Muslims,” the movement wrote and added that it is only “a different language for different idiots. Proselytization is proselytization. In the eyes of others (most of the normal world), you are just that.
‘Miss Aryan Angel’ is a British woman from Oxford The woman, real name Sarah Mountford, entered the competition, run by the Russian social media site VKontakte, under the pseudonym “Miss Aryan Angel’. The online competition aims to promote a ‘healthy Hitlerian competition’ according to the site.
There will be no Palestinian state, insists Israeli lawmaker The world still thinks there is a chance to establish a Palestinian state, but they simply do not understand the territory.” Member of Knesset Zvi Sukkot (Religious Zionism) says a viable, independent Palestinian state is a pipe dream, and one that Israel itself shouldn’t encourage.
Senior Hamas leader threatens regional war against Israel over targeted killings Hamas regional leader Saleh al-Arouri, who oversees the terror group’s operations in Judea and Samaria, recently warned Israel that the targeted assassination of Hamas leaders could lead to a regional war. In an interview with al-Aqsa Voice, al-Arouri said increased aggression from “the occupation government to our people and to the region as a whole will cause a full-scale war in the region.”
Hurricane Watch issued as Tropical Storm Idalia targets Florida with 100-mph winds, feet of storm surge Hurricane, Tropical Storm and Storm Surge Watches have been issued for parts of Florida as the state prepares for potential landfall of Idalia. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) upgraded Tropical Depression Ten near the southern Gulf of Mexico to Tropical Storm Idalia on Sunday, with landfall expected as a hurricane along Florida’s Gulf Coast early in the week.
Maui coverup: where in the world are all the children? The situation in Maui is a mystery. Something about it just doesn’t sit right. From the mysterious circumstances surrounding how the fires started, to the peculiar reactions from officials both before and after the fires, there’s an unsettling feeling about the whole matter. Now, it seems that officials are not only hiding the true death toll but are also being hush-hush about all the missing children. Why?
WILL THE MAUI FALSE FLAG EVENTUALLY TRIGGER A CIVIL WAR? …America’s reaction to the Maui false flag has triggered an unbelievable response of anger from the American people. The globalists are doing their best to shut it down before citizen passions rise to the point where they make J6 seem like a walk in the park.
Huge US FEMA cell phone, TV alert test scheduled for October This is a test. This is only a test. But it’s going to be one very big test. On Wednesday, October 4 at 2:20 p.m. ET, every TV, radio and cellphone in the United States should blare out the distinctive, jarring electronic warning tone of an emergency alert, accompanied by a notice along these lines:
Is BlackRock rebranding ESG as climate-related risks? Earlier this month, American rating agency Standard & Poor Global (“S&P Global”) announced it had dropped its use of environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) scores in assessing corporate borrowers, an initiative launched in 2021. S&P said the ESG ratings had not been accepted by its customers. Critics have dubbed the practice as “woke capitalism.” Unfortunately, the move to drop ESG scores may not be the victory for freedom as some may hope.
Shocking FOIA Results: $11 Million to Bribe OB-GYNs to Lie to Mothers About Safety of mRNA-Vaccines Fetal-maternal medicine specialist Dr. James Thorp has raised the alarm concerning massive damage to women and babies via mRNA injection. Following an interview with Dr. Thorp, Dr. Naomi Wolf says that what she has learned in the last few weeks is “so very devastating, regarding the plans of the evildoers of our moment, to destroy, or restrict severely the powers of humanity, via destroying babies and human fertility.”
“While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but when once they lose their virtue then will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader.” —Samuel Adams (1779)
Fellow Patriots, on this day in 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial. Democrats have ensured that dream has not yet been fully realized, as they put color above most other considerations. —Mark Alexander
Viktor Shokin argues that Joe Biden was behind his dismissal because Burisma wanted him gone.
Nate Jackson
Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: Donald Trump was impeached for what Joe Biden actually did.
Yeah, okay. We’ve written that a lotmore than once. Well, over the weekend, former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin, the guy Biden bragged about getting fired, spoke about the Biden Crime Family’s role in his firing.
(Note: In the opening text in the video, 2006 should read 2016.)
Right there on video at a Council on Foreign Relations event in 2018, Biden claimed he went to Ukraine and threatened “we’re not going to give you the billion dollars … if the prosecutor is not fired.” He claimed it was because Shokin wasn’t being aggressive enough in investigating corruption, which the American Leftmedia bought hook, line, and sinker. Others of us surmise that Shokin was getting a little too close to Burisma and the Biden connection for comfort.
There’s evidence of that, too. Ukrainian oligarch Mykola Zlochevsky, founder of Burisma, told the FBI — as revealed back in July in that buried form congressional Republicans managed to unearth — that his company offered $5 million each to Joe and Hunter Biden if Shokin was fired. It’s unclear if the money was ever dispersed, but if it was, it could have been funneled through one or more of those numerous Biden shell companies.
The “fact-checkers” scrambled to Biden’s defense back in 2020 when Trump alleged the corruption surrounding Shokin’s firing, vigorously denying that what Biden said on video had anything to do with his son.
How much do you trust the “fact-checkers”? Refusing to connect the dots isn’t the same thing as proving they can’t be connected.
Back to Shokin. To be sure, he has been accused of corruption while operating in one of the most corrupt countries on planet earth, so take his word with a grain of salt. But he flatly blamed the Bidens for his firing.
In a Fox News interview with Brian Kilmeade, Shokin said through a translator:
I have said repeatedly in my previous interviews that [then-Ukrainian President Petro] Poroshenko fired me at the insistence of the then Vice President Biden because I was investigating Burisma. …
[Poroshenko] understood and so did Vice President Biden that had I continued to oversee the Burisma investigation, we would have found the facts about the corrupt activities that they were engaging in. That included both Hunter Biden and Devon Archer and others. …
I do not want to deal in unproven facts, but my firm personal conviction is that, yes, this was the case. They were being bribed. And the fact that Joe Biden gave away $1 billion in U.S. money in exchange for my dismissal, my firing — isn’t that alone a case of corruption?
As for any White House response, spokesperson Ian Sams huffed, “For years, these false claims have been debunked, and no matter how much air time Fox gives them, they will remain false.” That claim is false, and if the media were honest, the “fact-checkers” would be all over it. We already noted that there’s actual evidence for Shokin’s claim. That includes Devon Archer’s congressional testimony and Biden’s own boast.
By the way, Shokin also says he was poisoned. Twice. Kilmeade’s team found the medical records to prove it.
In any case, we know the Leftmedia’s only interest is in protecting Biden, so if any journalists ever do look into this, it’ll be years from now.
Oh well. Maybe Sweetheart Special Counsel David Weiss will get to the bottom of it.
The Green Left’s latest predation on the American way of life involves an appliance that’s already known for its energy efficiency.
Douglas Andrews
You’d think the Greenies would be appreciative of folks who switch on their ceiling fans rather than crank up the AC during the hot summer months. You’d think they’d be pleased with the greater energy efficiency and the reduced fossil fuel use and the smaller carbon footprint that results.
You’d think.
But no. Joe Biden’s Department of Energy — the forgotten third agency that former Texas governor, presidential candidate, and future Trump Energy Secretary Rick Perry rightly vowed to eliminate back in 2011 — is proposing a new rule that would require ceiling fans to be more energy efficient. They say the new regulations would save American households on energy costs, but when? And how much? And at what cost to American manufacturers?
Welp, hold onto your hats. As Fox Business reports: “According to the Energy Department’s analysis, the new rules would save households about $39 over the lifespan of the new energy-efficient fan. However, the cost to manufacturers associated with the increased equipment will total $86.6 million per year.”
In short, the state is hitting the fan. As Fox Business continues:
The agency said standard residential ceiling fans complying with the proposed rule would cut consumers’ electricity costs to operate fans by roughly 40% compared to with the least-efficient fans currently on the market. The DOE estimates the purchase price of fans would increase by around $10 a piece if the new regulations are put in place, and says that additional cost would be covered by energy bill savings in about four years.
Of course, fan manufacturers and small businesses can’t simply absorb those costs. Instead, and understandably, they’ll pass those costs on to you, the end consumer. Just like they did when a Republican president, George H.W. Bush, decided that it’d be a good idea to make our toilets more water efficient. In that case, plunger manufacturers loved it, but we homeowners hated it.
A DOE mouthpiece tried to defend the pending fan rule changes on Friday, saying, “These proposed standards, which are required by Congress, wouldn’t take effect until 2028, would give Americans more energy efficient options to choose from, and would save hardworking taxpayers up to $369 million per year, while substantially reducing harmful air pollution — a crucial fact that some have conveniently failed to mention.”
So now we can add ceiling fans to the list of First World ingenuities being regulated and made more efficient (read: less effective) by the Left: washing machines, dishwashers, water heaters, gas stoves, and the list goes on.
Congressional Republicans, though, aren’t taking it lying down. In a letter from the House Committee on Small Business to former Dating Game contestant and current Energy Secretary Jenny Granholm, the GOP members wrote: “This rule would require numerous small business fan manufacturers to redesign their products and may put between 10 and 30 percent of small business ceiling fan manufacturers out of business. It appears that the Department of Energy (DOE) may not have properly considered small entities during this rulemaking process.”
Our sense is that they did indeed consider it. Right before they shrugged their shoulders and issued the rule change anyway. And their boss, Granholm, who in her current role makes for a compelling case study about the existence of the Peter Principle, is unlikely to be moved.
“It is important,” the GOP lawmakers continued, “for agencies to examine small businesses interests — which make up 99.9 percent of all businesses in the United States — when passing any new rule. America’s small businesses deserve to have their voices heard and considered.”
First it was our cars, then it was our gas stoves, and now it’s our fans. Next thing ya know, they’ll be coming for our beer.
Busing works, toxic paper straws, Chicago sues carmakers, debate viewership numbers, and more.
Thomas Gallatin & Jordan Candler
Cross-Examination
Busing works: When you put out the “welcome” sign, don’t complain when people show up. But that is exactly what Democrat leaders in self-declared “sanctuary” cities and states are doing. And it’s largely thanks to Republican governors like Florida’s Ron DeSantis (remember Martha’s Vineyard?) and Texas’s Greg Abbott. The latter launched a migrant busing campaign that is successfully putting a spotlight on Joe Biden’s de facto open-border malfeasance. Los Angeles Democrat Mayor Karen Bass complained, “LA has not extended an invitation asking for people to come.” Uh, hello — no one forced LA to declare itself a “sanctuary” city for illegal aliens. She then charged, “This is a political act.” So, the “sanctuary” city virtue signal was not political grandstanding? Please. Instead of blaming Abbott, these Democrat leaders should be blaming Biden. He’s responsible for creating this mess.
Protect or groom the kids? A judge in Missouri ruled against an effort by the pro-trans lobby and the ACLU to stop the state’s ban on gender-bending procedures for minors from going into effect. As of today, any medical provider who violates the law may lose their license and is liable for at least $500,000 in damages from patients who sue within 15 years after receiving gender-bending procedures. Meanwhile, in Maryland, a judge ruled in favor of a Montgomery County Public Schools requirement that all students take a pro-LGBTQ class. Judge Deborah Boardman said that parents are not free to opt their children out of these classes, asserting that parents “do not face any coercion to violate their sacred duty to raise their child in their faith.” In other words, Boardman effectively ruled that the schools are free to indoctrinate children on any ideology they want, and the only option available to parents is to counter what the schools are teaching at home.
Toxic paper straws: A recent study conducted by Belgian researchers has found that paper straws, a widely touted “eco-friendly” alternative to plastic straws, contained a much higher concentration of toxic so-called “forever chemicals” or PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) compared to plastic straws. Some 90% of paper straws contained PFAS compared to 75% of plastic straws. Even 80% of the other green alternative, bamboo straws, contained PFAS. The irony here is that certain countries like Belgium and the United Kingdom and cities like New York City have enacted or are seeking to ban plastic straws primarily on the basis of their PFAS content, and now it appears that the “green” alternative is worse for people and the environment.
Chicago sues carmakers: In yet another example of bad government producing bad policy, Chicago’s new Democrat Mayor Brandon Johnson is suing car manufacturers Kia and Hyundai for the spiking rate of car thefts in the city over the last three years. Johnson’s rationale is that these auto manufacturers are making their cars too easy for criminals to steal, so it’s the carmakers’ fault, not the thieves’. This is like blaming rape victims by claiming the way they dressed invited the attack. So, rather than cracking down on criminals responsible for auto theft, Johnson is sticking it to Kia and Hyundai, which by the way make some of the most affordable cars. The result will be to make cars even less affordable for the poor, who suffer the most when lawlessness is excused by politicians.
Debate viewership numbers misnomer: Following the Republican presidential debate hosted by Fox News last week — a debate that Donald Trump conspicuously did not attend, as he opted for a friendly interview with Tucker Carlson — there was a lot of social media chatter over viewership numbers. Fox’s debate featured eight candidates, all polling well behind Trump, but drew 12.8 million viewers. While the viewership of the debate was far below Fox’s record-setting 24 million viewers in 2015 with the Republican debate field that included Trump, it was no slouch. Meanwhile, Trump touted viewership numbers of his Carlson interview: “231,000,000 Views, and still counting. The Biggest Video on Social Media, EVER, more than double the Super Bowl!” This “views” number is now over 235 million, but there is a huge caveat. According to the metric used by X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, a “view” is tabulated after a mere two seconds. According to Mashable, a more accurate viewership number for people who watched at least two seconds of Trump’s interview was 14.8 million.
Maybe one day they’ll have their own state: A group of investors and entrepreneurs is seeking to buy land in northern California with a vision toward building a new green-tech-friendly city. The area for this project is near Travis Air Force Base, which has some folks raising national security concerns. These security concerns are regarding foreign ownership and investment in the project.
Headlines
Tropical Storm Idalia is intensifying, will strengthen into major hurricane before Florida landfall this week (Fox Weather)
Burisma’s Devon Archer met with then-Secretary of State Kerry just weeks before Shokin was fired (Fox News)
Joe Biden’s handlers are getting nervous about Gavin Newsom debating Ron DeSantis (RedState)
Biden invited WNBA champs to White House then ghosted them (Hot Air)
Three people killed in racially motivated shooting in Florida (National Review) | Jacksonville sheriff says guns don’t cause shootings, wicked people do (RedState)
Feds weighing criminal charges against top Democrat Senator Bob Menendez (Daily Wire)
Biden suggests he will mandate a COVID booster for all Americans this fall (Townhall)
The GOP primary candidates’ stances on the topic were revealed, as well as the radical Left’s lies.
Emmy Griffin
Abortion is a political issue and people have divergent thoughts even amongst the GOP. We saw that on display in the recent primary debate, with each candidate holding a slightly different position on the subject.
The question that was asked during the debate concerned a 15-week federal ban on abortion. At 15 weeks gestation, a child in the womb is about the size of an apple. We are not talking about a small, early pregnancy baby; 15 weeks is into the second trimester, and the baby has all its major organs already developed and growing and is probably able to be felt (in terms of kicking) by the mother. Yet even so, it still qualifies for a death sentence if the baby is deemed inconvenient.
With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the decision about the legality of abortion is now up to the individual states to decide. A federal ban would help stem the excesses of the radical Left’s murderous views on the subject.
Of the eight GOP candidates who participated in last Wednesday’s debate, former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, and former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson were the only three who have openly supported a national ban. Tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy is pro-life, but did not weigh in on this particular discussion. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christy and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum are happy with the current federalist status quo. Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley laid out the fact that even if a federal ban were introduced, Republicans don’t have the votes in Congress for it to even land on her hypothetical desk — in other words, a silly question.
As for the two frontrunners, former President Donald Trump — who did not attend the debate — is largely touted as the reason for the overturning of Roe because of his three Supreme Court appointments. However, he has been cited in private lamenting the political ramifications of abortion in the midterms, as Republicans had a flat performance as opposed to the expected red wave.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis pointed to his own excellent pro-life record in Florida. Under his leadership, the state has enacted a heartbeat ban (a limit of six weeks) for an abortion. He also has resources for parents who ultimately choose life. His only promise on the debate stage was to be a pro-life president and to use his influence to “help local communities and states advance the cause of life.” He supports the Supreme Court’s push for federalism and would seek to support those states that wish to have more restrictive bans and call out states that would allow the barbaric practice of abortion on demand — in some cases, even up until birth.
This debate highlights the struggle of the GOP in a post-Roe world. Is allowing the states to determine their own laws on abortion enough? Or should a “good and moral people,” as Founding Father John Adams hoped for us, enforce a universal restriction? Despite some hesitation that has become de rigueur post-midterms, pro-life causes are not a losing issue, especially in light of the Democrats’ extremism.
The immediate outcry from the Left was summed up perfectly by former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki’s social media post, “No one supports abortion up until birth.”
It’s true that most Americans don’t support abortion up until birth, but the radical wing of the Democrat Party (put we repeat ourselves) absolutely does.
The official party stance under the euphemism of “reproductive health” states that its members will “fight to overturn federal and state laws that create barriers to reproductive health and rights.” What are those barriers? Typically, gestational age limits. Democrats in Congress have actively voted against lifesaving care for children who survive an abortion by blocking the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. And as recently as February 2022, Senate Democrats pushed through an abortion bill — disingenuously called the Women’s Health Protection Act — that not only would have forced taxpayers to pay for these abortions but would explicitly allow for them up until the moment of birth.
They are adamantly opposed to any federal ban and have blocked the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act — the bill that was the impetus for the GOP debate discussion. To a man, the Democrats demonized former Democrat Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard for deigning to call for an abortion ban in the last three months of pregnancy.
Leftist pundits like Jen Psaki and “fact-checkers” like The Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler just hope that most readers aren’t astute enough to call them on their gaslighting.
This was an interesting first debate. This writer hopes that the candidates take a more bold stand for life as the primaries loom ever closer. Fortune, as they say, favors the brave, and the cause of protecting the most vulnerable — unborn children — is a righteous one.
Come the general election, Republican Party policy on the question of climate change will have to do more than call it a hoax.
Douglas Andrews
It pains us to say it, but Greta Thunberg is winning the climate change debate.
No, she doesn’t make good, sound, thoughtful, rational arguments, and she doesn’t communicate in a way that invites consensus and collaboration. Instead, she gives decent people a rash. She’s a petulant child being exploited by her parents and by the media and by the Left. But the issue of climate change is becoming harder and harder for Republicans to simply ignore or dismiss — at least from an electoral perspective.
Young Republicans, for example, are a lot more concerned about the climate than are older Republicans. So, of course, are the centrists and the independents who tend to decide elections. According to a September 2022 AP-NORC poll, 62% of Americans say the federal government is doing too little to reduce climate change. That number includes half of Republicans under age 45 but only 32% of older Republicans. The point here is that when nearly two-thirds of the electorate feel a certain way about a certain issue, it’s electorally suicidal to dismiss that issue as a hoax — or to allow the leftist press to say you’re dismissing it as a hoax.
So if the Republican Party is to fare well in the 2024 election — both for president and all down the ballot — the party will need to hone and communicate a coherent message that goes deeper than, “Climate change is a hoax.”
Perhaps the most riveting moment of last week’s GOP presidential debate came when 38-year-old upstart Vivek Ramaswamy took a shot at the rest of the candidates on climate change: “I’m the only person on the stage who isn’t bought and paid for,” he said, “so I can say this: The climate change agenda is a hoax, and we need to declare our independence from it.”
Right behind Ramaswamy’s feel-good zinger was the moment when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis shut down co-moderator Bret Baier’s effort to get a show of hands about whether they believe climate change is man-caused. “We’re not children here,” said DeSantis — and that was the end of Baier’s show-of-hands stunt.
Incidentally, notice how Ramaswamy said the climate change agenda is a hoax, but notice how the dishonest mainstream media reported otherwise. The Appropriated Associated Press and The Hill and plenty of others reported that he called climate change itself a hoax. That’s a lie. What he did was say that the Left’s claim that we need to enact the Green New Deal, and we need to declare war on fossil fuels, and we need more windmills and solar panels, and we need to phase out the internal combustion engine in order to save the planet — those things are a hoax.
If you’re like us, you smiled at the rhetorical force of Ramaswamy’s statement. But then, like it does after you’ve eaten a rich piece of chocolate, the endorphin rush subsides and we end up back where we were — in this case, wondering when the Republican Party will agree on a basic set of climate principles and when its candidates for president will begin communicating them. Because while “hoax” sounds great, while it sounds like a necessary thumb in the eye of Green New Dealers, it isn’t going to get it done at the ballot box — especially in the swing states, where razor-thin margins will determine who our next president is and whether our Supreme Court will retain its conservative majority for the next generation.
“We’re getting to a point where Republicans are losing winnable elections because they’re alienating people that care about climate change,” said Christopher Barnard, the Republican president of the American Conservation Coalition, the largest conservative environmental group in the nation. “You don’t have to be the biggest climate champion,” Barnard continued. “If you just say, ‘Climate change is real, and we’re going to have some sort of solution,’ that’s enough for most voters.”
That may or may not be enough, but at least it’s a start. We tend to think the Republican Party’s position on climate change should include an acknowledgement that the planet may indeed be warming slightly and that human activity might play a small role in that warming.
But beyond that, the real debate must be what to do about it. As climate thinkers like Bjorn Lomborg have long maintained, many of the elaborate and expensive actions that the Green Left proposes are both inefficient and deeply misguided. Why, for example, spend trillions of dollars in an effort to move global temperatures a fraction of a degree and ruining the global economy in the process when we can instead address issues with far greater benefit to humanity, such as fighting malaria and maintaining a safe and fresh water supply around the globe?
Furthermore, the war that Barack Obama and Joe Biden have been waging on American energy independence has been, as Ramaswamy rightly put it, “a wet blanket” on the American economy. And given that it’s still the economy, stupid, this is the sort of rational environmental territory that Republicans can win on.
In short, the word “hoax” has a nice ring to it, but it’s not going to win us any hotly contested elections.
Sometimes the adolescent cadre of leftist speech suppressors endeavoring to bury conservative commentary and analysis step into a deeper hole than they anticipated. Such is the unfolding case with Apple’s podcast platform, which is threatening to cancel “The Megyn Kelly Show” because of her defense of women. Apparently, Kelly has been very vocal in her objections to women being forced to compete against males pretending to be females, and then having to shower with them.
Enter our friend, Mike Rowe, who tends to be conservative/libertarian in his views. He posted a video of Kelly daring Apple to deplatform her and an image of himself displaying that video while noting: “If it comes to that, I’d march with her. Would you?”
Like Kelly, Rowe’s social media presence reaches millions of followers. As he sometimes does when he has stepped up to defend what we should ALL defend, in this case free speech, he chooses an example from some emotionally incontinent objector and eviscerates them to highlight the absurdity of their objection.
Rowe notes that “most agreed that the underlying issues — free speech and women’s rights — were worth defending and answered in the affirmative.” However, he posted the following objection from one Jessica Pranger:
“Nope, not for one second would I stand next to this farce of a woman. Mike, your desperate grabs at popularity are embarrassing. Stay in your lane, please. I thank you in advance for not inserting your bullcrap pandering for women in any other scenario that includes women. You don’t belong and you most certainly are not choosing the right woman to be in complete support of. She is a brainwashed, phobic, fear driven, fear mongering blow hard… much like the faction you love pandering to so much. You and your ilk are so off base that I am actually embarrassed for you.”
And we’re off! Here are some excerpts from Mike’s response:
Obviously, you’re not the only one to dislike Megyn Kelly [or] admonish me for wandering “outside my lane.” The question is, do you care at all about the underlying issues? If not, that’s okay, but if you’re going to share your feelings with 6 million people, why not take a moment to include some actual thoughts? Specifically, some thoughts on the right to speak freely, and the right for women to compete fairly? Those are the issues in question, not your feelings about Megyn or me. Unless of course, your feelings are the only thing you have to share?
You say that Megyn is not the “right” woman to follow, or offer my “complete support” to. I didn’t say that Megyn has my “complete support.” All I said was that I’d stand with her on the underlying issues; just as I would stand with you, if you were muzzled by a big tech company for publicly supporting the rights of women. …
As for your personal comments about Megyn Kelly, I don’t share your view that she is a “farce” of woman, but even if I did, I’d support her right to speak freely, and her daughter’s right to use a locker room free of biological men. Do you? Who knows? You haven’t said. All you’ve argued here, is that I’m pandering to women. You seem to believe that because I’m not a woman, I have no right to hold an opinion on anything related to women. If so, am I also precluded from expressing an opinion on slavery, simply because I’ve never been a slave, or owned a slave? You advise me to “stay in my lane” in much the same way people used to tell women and minorities to “know their place.” That strikes me as a convenient way for people to silence those with whom they disagree, without offering an actual argument.
I get it. The world is tired of celebrities using their platforms to weigh in on the headlines. … Why then, would a celebrity, or a company for that matter, knowingly put their fans and customers in such a position? Why did Bud Light make it so hard for so many of their customers to support them? Why did Target? As I type this, I see that Alice Cooper has been dropped by a cosmetics company for suggesting that children are not in a position to decide for themselves what gender they are. And poor Carlos Santana … he doesn’t know what to do. A few weeks ago, he declared during a concert, “a man is a man, and a woman is woman.” … So, did Carlos Santana wander outside his lane? Did Alice Cooper? Or, did they take a highly principled position on a topic that mattered deeply to them, and exercise their first amendment rights?
I’m worried that we’ve entered into a time when the experts disagree on every serious topic, where journalism has been replaced almost entirely by editorial partisanship, and everyone on both sides of every issue believes the “science has been settled” in whatever way confirms their own beliefs. Climate change, Covid, mask and vaccine mandates, immigration, homelessness, transgender rights, criminal justice, reparations … the certainty is everywhere. Mostly though, I’m worried that people — and corporations — are determined to silence the opposition, rather than make any attempt to persuade, or even put forth a rational argument.
If you were on this page twelve years ago, you know that I was boycotted by a big trade organization called the TRSA. … Basically, the Textile Service and Rental Association was upset with me because I had “wandered outside of my lane,” and participated in a campaign that promoted disposable shop towels. … When I refused to apologize, or distance myself from the people who hired me, the TRSA published a list of everyone I did business with — Discovery, Ford, Wrangler, Caterpillar, Viva, and Kimberly Clarke — and then called for a general boycott of all things related to Mike Rowe. In short, they tried to silence me, and then they tried to destroy me. It scared the hell out of me, and I fought back — on this very page — and they eventually went away. I wonder, though, what would happen today? And to be clear, I’d prefer not to find out. But not if it means forgoing my right to speak freely, or standing by, while women’s fundamental rights are being cast aside, or being told to shut up or else.
To sum up, Jessica, this page is “my lane,” and you are a guest on it. To be sure, you’ve said some rude and unpersuasive things, but I would never ban you or block you for those reasons. On the other hand, it’s worth remembering that this page is not really my property. This page belongs to Facebook, and you and I are both here with their permission. Tell me, if they were to close “my lane” because of this post, would you object? Would you join me in protest? Or would you celebrate my banishment?
That was the question inherent in Megyn Kelly’s video. I’ve answered it as best I can. You should, too.
Biden’s Senior Moment of the Week (Vol. 57) — Joe Biden took a few hours out of his busy vacation schedule to visit Maui, the Hawaiian island ravaged by deadly wildfires. It did not go well.
Somebody’s Gotta Do It — Mike Rowe goes to SkillsUSA to learn about a few major trades and to compete with the masters.
Trans Clinic Whistleblower Was Right — The New York Times confirms that a transgender clinic whistleblower’s claim was accurate. The clinic was pushing hormones on kids.
“They incite a movement against what they falsely label ‘climate change fanaticism’ as they conveniently forget that the dictionary definition of a ‘cult’ is ‘the dismissal of facts in devotion to a lie.’ And while they refuse to accept the facts behind increasingly obvious damages … they lash out at the truth tellers instead and label ‘indisputable evidence’ as hysteria. They compound the already difficult challenge of the climate crisis by promising to do more of exactly what created this crisis in the first place.” —climate czar John Kerry
“The climate change countering has to come from an international commitment to decrease the carbon imprint in society so you don’t have the kinds of crazy weather that we’re having in this country.” —Anthony Fauci
Observations
“I don’t know if I can think of a better example of where the two sides are mentally than the Left celebrating Trump’s arrest and impending imprisonment while the Right gives each other high fives about how cool the mugshot is.” —Jesse Kelly
“There’s simply no rational or legal explanation for Attorney General Merrick Garland naming David Weiss a special counsel in the Hunter Biden investigation. … Would anyone genuinely seeking an ‘evenhanded’ inquiry hand the job to a prosecutor who’s already attempted to shower the target of the investigation with an extraordinarily favorable immunity deal? It defies credulity.” —David Harsanyi
“If journalists really cared about democracy and voting, they wouldn’t be so mercilessly quick to declare everyone except Trump is toast. If they all think Trump is ‘dangerous for democracy,’ as ‘CBS Mornings’ co-host Tony Dokoupil insisted to Nikki Haley, why do they sound like debates (with or without Trump) are beside the point?” —Tim Graham
For the Record
“Asa Hutchinson needs to go away. He was a wasted space on stage. He offered nothing, had weaker answers than anyone else and was like the ugly kid who gets a sympathetic kiss at a spin-the-bottle contest. One can forgive a wasted performance in a debate, but his was wasted and useless.” —Erick Erickson
Upright
“I want to build a multi-ethnic working-class coalition that delivers not just a 50.1 electoral margin but a landslide, a moral mandate. … To me, the America First movement means we put all Americans first.” —Vivek Ramaswamy
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee joins ‘Varney & Co.’ to react to Nikki Haley arguing Republicans are running against Kamala Harris in 2024, not Biden. #foxbusiness #varney
Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., joined ‘Fox & Friends First’ to discuss why she supports impeaching President Biden and NYC residents protesting the city’s migrant crisis. #FoxNews
The chanting is chilling: “We’re coming for your children…We’re coming for your children…”
Earlier, I wrote the following in an article titled: “Those attacking children.”
We recently reported the San Francisco LGBTQ organization that put out the song lauding their cause that has as its lyrics, “We are coming for your children…” We reported on numerous occasions the transvestites who, with and without parent’s permission, hold readings in libraries and, in some public-school settings, offer presentations that graphically display and verbally describe every sort of perverted sexual activity of their wicked practitioners—some even doing so while dressed in costumes that partially expose their nudity.
The assault on the children of America and the world hasn’t abated. It is ramping up dramatically. And the true nature of its origin is being made known. The following news item sheds light to some extent on the source of the assault:
The Walker Art Center, a taxpayer funded museum in Minneapolis, held a “playful demon summoning session” for families and children, with a performance called “Lilith the Empathic Demon.”
“Demons have a bad reputation, but maybe we’re just not very good at getting to know them,” an event description reads.
“Families are invited to create a vessel to trap the demon that knows them best—perhaps the ‘demon of overthinking’—and then participate in a playful ceremony to summon and befriend their demon,” the website explains.
The event was designed for families, with children encouraged to participate, and finished with a “playful demon summoning session.”
This is a free country. If adults want to dabble in the black arts in their free time, that is up to them. But family friendly? For children? Taxpayer funded? Really?
It’s not even exaggerated…
Why would anyone play with things like this? (“Taxpayer Funded Museum in Minneapolis Holds ‘Demon Summoning’ Event For Children,” Baxter Bitri, The Voice, August 15, 2023)
“We are coming for your children” is a chant that has been at the center of some elements within the LBTQ movement for a number of years. They sometimes claim the chant is done just to make fun of the stiff-necked religionists—especially Christians—who oppose the freedom to live without some deity’s restrictive morals.
And from the story coming out of Minneapolis, we are apparently expected to believe the “playful demon-summoning session” is to further the fun-poking. However, the ceremony is, I believe, opening the portals of the demonic realm even wider. That opening is exposed by the ratcheted-up activity of wickedness here and across the world.
I’m aware that many who observe these times in light of Bible prophecy castigate author Jonathan Cahn for his recent book, Return of the Gods. But I believe it is on the mark in helping expose what’s going on in the supernatural realm, as that realm seems to be infusing a profound increase of evil into the world. This assault is particularly virulent in attacking even the smallest children.
What is mind-boggling is that parents would actually, even playfully, bid demons to interact with their children. This is the point to which Satan has been able to delude these parents and others into believing the demon world is just a myth, something to consider as fodder for foisting spoofs. This demonic ploy can thus convince people that because he—Satan—is a myth, God must be, too.
Seems to me the devil is making significant inroads in bringing about such deception. Take, for example, how Satan has convinced doctors, school boards, teachers, and even parents in some cases to embrace the transgender madness.
As I’ve written previously, with regard to the transgender perversions going on, even die-hard feminists are beginning to see the insanity and detriment caused by the Satanic attempts to blend the genders. I use the word “Satanic,” because it is Satan who places the ideas from which these perversions flow into activity that is meant to take children’s innocence.
The attack on children has taken on much more sinister movement toward satanic control. You can almost hear the demons hissing within their human minions’ voices as they chant, “We are coming for your children…We are coming for your children.”
The ever-increasing assault on children is a primary reason I believe God is about to say, “Enough!” The devil’s war against the most innocent–the little ones who haven’t reached the age at which they’re accountable for decisions in the matter of salvation—might just be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. This might be one indicator of just how near the Rapture might be to taking place.
Be certain you are not left behind when that great event occurs. Here is how to be ready:
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:9–10)
Fully 77% of Americans say Joe Biden is too old to be effective if he is indeed reelected as president. The stragglers are finally catching up. The only question is: what took these people so long?
Fox News host Mark Levin sounds off on Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’s indictment of former President Donald Trump on ‘Life, Liberty & Levin.’
There is a totalitarian tendency stalking the world’s democracies. It draws on the idea of “misinformation” and “disinformation” to try to delegitimise opposition to government policies, whatever they might happen to be at the moment.
What is “misinformation” or “disinformation”? While there are suitable dictionary definitions—the first is accidentally untrue information, and the second is deliberately untrue information. These definitions beg the real question—“What is truth, and how do you determine it?”
This seems to have suddenly become a matter of pressing importance, particularly in the English-speaking world, with what looks suspiciously like a coordinated push by governments to introduce legislation to control “untruths” on the internet.
The UK has the Online Safety Bill, where truth is to be regulated by OFCOM, the Office of Communications. Ofcom is currently being taken to court by Canadian Mark Steyn because they fined him for interviewing Britains affected by vax injury.
Canada has a bevy of laws, and as we saw when the trucker’s bank accounts were frozen, in some of the harshest approaches ever seen to dissent by a democracy.
The last truck blocking the southbound lane moves after a breakthrough to resolve the impasse at a protest blockade at the Canada-U.S. border in Coutts, Alta., on Feb. 2, 2022. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)
While the United States is governed by the First Amendment guaranteeing free speech, the United States has a Disinformation Governance Board, and as the Twitter files have revealed, the U.S. federal government appears to clandestinely seek ways to evade the constitutionally guaranteed right to free speech.
They do this under the cloak of national security, and to achieve their aim, “disrupting” a school board meeting with legitimate questions can be called an “act of domestic terrorism” so as to draw ordinary Americans into their net.
Labor has always been keen on political censorship, and indeed, back in 2009, Stephen Conroy, then the communications minister, introduced legislation to filter the internet in Australia.
Where Has This Impetus Come From?
Moves to establish these controls seem to have surfaced somewhere in 2018 or 2019 in a number of these jurisdictions, but they really started to gain public support in 2020. Or at least that’s a reasonable conclusion to draw from a review of Google searches on the two words.
Google search trends for misinformation and disinformation. (Screenshot/Google)
The 2020 spikes all occur to coincide with the appearance of COVID-19, which with the states of emergency and heavily controlled narratives, explains why concern about disinformation would be high. But what was happening in 2004?
On March 20, 2003, the Iraq War started based on the premise Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.
In 2004, Google went public via an IPO (initial public offering), which explains why our graph starts there and suggests that if it had started earlier, we would have found the increase coincided with the ramping up of rhetoric against Saddam Hussein.
And what we now know is that the real misinformation and disinformation in 2003 was the government’s line and that huge amounts of the COVID-19 information that came from the government in 2020 was also misinformation or disinformation.
Politics in the Backdrop
While it is in the nature of governments to try to suppress information unfavourable to their position, as Senator Conroy’s misadventure shows, it is difficult to get naked censorship over the line when the public is generally unworried.
What makes today’s moves towards censorship dangerous is that the public is not only polarised, but they are scared, so a proportion is prepared to support online censorship because, in their own minds allowing someone else’s free speech could be a threat to their lives.
People wearing protective face masks walk on the street in Brooklyn, New York, on Oct. 7, 2020. (Chung I Ho/The Epoch Times)
Even so, the pushback against the proposed legislation in Australia has been quite extensive, including legal organisations like the Victorian Bar Council.
While there are good legal and free speech arguments against the proposed legislation, the most persuasive for me is the research on which the whole process is based, which demonstrates just how yesterday’s misinformation is today’s Gospel truth.
In 2017, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) was asked to “consider the impact of online search engines, social media and digital content aggregators (digital platforms) on competition in the media and advertising services markets.”
Their report in 2019 was mostly about competition issues, but one section touched on misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation.
They did recommend that a body like the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) be empowered to police a code of conduct. However, in their report, the ACCC explicitly recommends excluding misinformation in any code of conduct and also limiting the types of disinformation that might be included.
That is because most of these matters can be dealt with by existing laws and institutions.
Why did ACMA ignore this report to produce the bill that it has? One must suspect political bias. Misinformation and disinformation are terms used more on the left than the right side of politics.
Inasmuch as both terms depend on what you believe to be true and there is this preponderance of usage on the left, then misinformation and disinformation become aligned with disputing things the left thinks are true.
COVID Misinformation
To get beyond the ACCC report, ACMA relies on research they commissioned from the News and Media Research Centre at the University of Canberra, which looked for exposure to misinformation on the internet on COVID-19.
Amongst other things, they test five propositions, some of them still beloved of the left but which we now know definitely to be either false or at the very least, matters of scientific dispute. These propositions had to do with the efficacy of masks, the safety of vaccines, that scientific best practice was being followed by governments, that the risks of COVID were not being exaggerated, and that supplements could not be used to treat COVID.
They also find that the more exposed to the internet you are, the more likely you are to delve beyond the mainstream and the more likely you are to be exposed to “misinformation.”
The surveying was done over the December 2020 to January 2021 period when vaccines weren’t even available and lockdowns were all too prevalent.
While you might have been able to make a case for the five propositions then, you certainly can’t now. The subjective reality of the researchers is tipped on its head.
Those most exposed to digital platforms and less relatively exposed to mainstream media were the best informed.
It appears that the best antidote to misinformation is a free exchange of ideas.
Ironically, one of the most contentious parts of the ACMA proposal is that all government information be treated a priori—as true and not subject to a code of conduct—letting the cat out of the bag as to its true purpose.
What Will Happen to the Public Exchange of Ideas
This bill is about partisan control by elements within the government and the public service who believe the public should unquestionably believe what they are told.
Imagine that principle being extended from COVID-19 to matters of race and biology.
Supporters hold placards during a Yes 23 community event in support of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, in Sydney, Australia, on July 2, 2023. (AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi)
If the bill were to be passed, what would even the Opposition be allowed to say about The Voice, given the constant refrain from the government that they are spreading “misinformation.”
It is hard to see ACMA not taking action to thwart the democratic process.
Australia doesn’t have a bill of rights, but perhaps some simple propositions, like the right of citizens to dispute government information, should be embedded in the Constitution.
When you align the government and the public service together and then add massive corporations, sporting codes, and community groups like churches, it is very difficult for the truth to get out. But out it must if we are to continue as a successful, pluralist, liberal society.
We can only find out what is true by letting it duke it out with what is untrue. Sometimes in this approach, we find we were wrong in the first place.
Allowing a Nanny State actor to determine what is true will not lead to truth but to civil unrest and poverty.
China is not only a major threat in the world, but China is dying. Those two observations seem contradictory. But, they reinforce each other. The inevitable decline of China makes it more likely that the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party will act sooner rather than later.
Ben Shapiro pulls together five serious problems for China in a recent video. Here are his arguments, along with a few of my comments.
China’s first problem is demographics. China has become the fastest-aging society in all of human history. Due to its one-child policy, China has millions more adults than children.
Problem number two is a lack of innovation. If it were a free society, it would have a robust and innovative economy. But China has no innovation so it must steal intellectual property from other nations.
Debt is a third major problem for China. In previous commentaries, I have observed that any nation with a debt to GDP ratio over 130 percent eventually defaults. China has a ratio that is approaching 160 percent.
Problem number four is the military. Yes, China is threatening other countries with its military, but it’s falling behind because it is using older, less sophisticated microchips. China’s navy is effective in coastal zones but cannot project power in deep water.
A final problem is the fact that China is a dictatorship. This is a significant reason for the other problems. The country’s leaders do not allow freedom and innovation.
The harsh truth is that China cannot change its demographic reality or its economic reality. And it won’t change its political structure. It is a threat to the world, but it also looks like a nation about to collapse in the future.
Free speech is a problem – Not so much for the general population, but for the establishment class and their grip on social influence. Much like the invention of the printing press that created an information revolution in the Middle Ages, the internet has created a global platform which almost anyone on the planet can access and speak, hypothetically, to millions or even billions of people. This level of information sharing is unprecedented in human history and so it is no surprise that governments and globalists want the ability to filter what is said and what is heard to their benefit.
To this end, the EU Commission, using the covid event as a convenient cover, heralded the passage of the ‘Digital Services Act’ (DSA) in early 2022. The DSA was presented as a tool for the EU to “rein in” the power of social media corporations, but in reality its primary purpose is to give the EU legal precedence to force Big Tech companies to apply EU censorship standards to their platforms even if they are not European based businesses. In other words, the goal is to force the entire western world to accept the European governance of online speech while ignoring national boundaries and constitutional protections.
Similar to China‘s “Great Fire Wall”, the EU plans to use the DSA as a means to shut down domestic access to offending websites and content. But where the EU situation is unique is in their focus on controlling speech outside of Europe as well. That is to say, information and speech among non-Europeans could still be identified as a threat to their leftist sensibilities and cited as a reason for sanctioning a website altogether.
This means, for example, that an EU-friendly (censored) version of Twitter might still not be allowed to operate, not because of information shared by Europeans, but because of information shared on Twitter outside of Europe. The EU will not be happy until every other country follows the same online rules they follow.
These rules would include EU “hate speech” and “disinformation” restrictions. Keep in mind that in many parts of Europe using the wrong pronouns for a trans person is considered punishable hate speech, and pointing out that medical masks are useless for stopping covid transmission is considered dangerous disinformation. Scientific facts don’t play into such determinations, they are purely political.
Elon Musk and Twitter have been cited as targets of the DSA, and some argue that the DSA was specifically created by the EU in preparation for Musk’s eventual takeover of the massive platform. EU officials publicly argued with some vigor that they would find a way to force Musk to conform to their political taboos. Twitter is one of several dozen signatories to the European Union’s “2022 Strengthened Code of Practice on Disinformation,” a self-regulatory framework for addressing disinformation tied to the DSA.
The 2022 Disinformation Code contains a series of 44 “Commitments,” some of which are further subdivided into “Measures.” When a company becomes a signatory, it submits a subscription document identifying which Commitments (and, more specifically, which Measures) it is signing up for. Twitter’s June 2022 subscription document indicates that Twitter has committed, among other things, to: “defund the dissemination of disinformation and misinformation,” “prevent the misuse of advertising systems to disseminate misinformation or disinformation,” and “put in place or further bolster policies to address both misinformation and disinformation.”
Who gets to determine what constitutes “disinformation?” A group of faceless and unelected bureaucrats on the other side of the world from Twitter headquarters. How Musk plans to meet the requirements of the DSA without crushing the renewed surge of free speech on the site is not entirely clear. In theory, armies of mass flaggers operating out of places like Germany can now seek out tweets they don’t like in the US and have posts erased, or accounts locked and banned, even if the info presented is factually accurate.
That which the EU considers “hate speech” and “disinformation” is based in far-left ideology and zealotry, not on clearly defined and reasonable guidelines. That which progressives deem acceptable today will ultimately become outlawed tomorrow. Adapting to their rules means abandoning any semblance of a free environment. There is no free speech in Europe.
Thierry Breton, the current Commissioner for Internal Market of the European Union and member of the World Economic Forum, tweeted this week about his excitement for the official legal enforcement of the DSA, saying that it would ‘make the internet safer for everyone.’
Today, the Digital Services Act — #DSA — becomes legally enforceable for Very Large Online Platforms & Search Engines.
These systemic platforms play a very important role in our daily lives — so it was time for the EU to set our own rules.
But what threat is the public being saved from? Hurt feelings? The notion that governments are stewards of speech is nonsensical because all governments naturally seek to restrict freedoms to the furthest extent to which the public will tolerate. Political elites are not protectors, they are predators, always looking for that next piece of freedom they can snatch away in their jaws.
Aliases are tricky things. They are sometimes innocent or essential like the code name that the Secret Service gives you as part of your protection like “Celtic.”
Then there are nicknames that are preferred to your given name.Take the Big Lebowski. He did not like being called Mr. Lebowski and preferred “Dude” but he was flexible: “I’m The Dude. So, that’s what you call me. You know, that or, uh, His Dudeness, or, uh, Duder, or El Duderino, if you’re not into the whole brevity thing.”
It appears that President Biden also preferred on occasion not to be called “Mr. Biden.” The question is why and whether Mr. Peters is more Big Lebowski or Big Guy.
People apparently were told to avoid directly referring to President Biden. In one email, Biden associate James Gilliar explained the rules to Tony Bobulinski, then a business partner of Hunter’s, and not to speak of the former veep’s connection to any transactions: “Don’t mention Joe being involved, it’s only when u [sic] are face to face, I know u [sic] know that but they are paranoid.”
So it was not “Mr. Biden” who would receive a planned 10 percent cut on a deal with a Chinese energy firm. It was “the Big Guy,” who also was to receive benefits like office space from foreign sources.
Recently, an FBI document showed that a trusted source relayed an allegation of bribery where a Ukrainian businessman said that he was told not to send money directly to “the Big Guy” but used a complex series of accounts to transfer the funds.
The question is whether “Robert L. Peters” used in various emails was in fact Joe Biden.
If you thought the pandemic was over, we’re sorry to say that you’re wrong.
As the 2024 election looms closer and the presidential candidates are increasingly at each others’ throats, so it seems COVID is at ours. And Lauren Chen is well aware.
“It does seem like COVID part two is back. That’s right, the pandemic strikes back,” Chen says. “A lot of people, if you ask me, have been a little too quick to move on and forget that hey, you actually had neighbors who are calling the police on you if you tried to have guests over.”
“There were actually people who were dying that were prevented from seeing their loved ones,” she adds.
We need to remember, because if we don’t, then it could easily all happen over again. And in some ways, it already is.
Lionsgate, a production company based in California, has re-implemented a mask mandate for some employees after a few employees tested positive for COVID.
The employees were told in an email to “wear a medical grade face covering (surgical mask KN95 or N95) when indoors except when alone in an office with the door closed, actively eating, actively drinking at their desk or workstation, or if they are the only individual present in a large open workspace.”
“If you are still afraid of COVID in this day and age, you haven’t been paying attention and you should probably go see some sort of mental health professional, rather than place all of your concern in something like COVID,” Chen says.
It’s not only the Hollywood studio that’s making a big deal out of re-implementing mask mandates. Morris Brown College has also reintroduced a mask mandate for both students and staff.
The college made this decision because there have been reports of students testing positive for COVID.
“Yes, the fatality rates for COVID are very similar to that of the flu. Do we institute mask mandates for the flu now? Absolutely not. It’s just something we live with and we understand that we live in a society. People get sick. So, the fact that some people out there still have this irrational fear when it comes to COVID,” Chen says. “It’s not based in science. It’s not based in medicine. This is an ideological thing.”
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