December 13, 2024 — John Hinderaker

Violence and the Left

Featured image On the left, everything is violent except violence. We see this often in the context of speech, but Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez extended the universe of violence to include denial of health insurance coverage: “This is not to say that an act of violence is justified, but I think for anyone who is confused or shocked or appalled, they need to understand that people interpret and feel and experience denied claims as »
December 13, 2024 — Steven Hayward

The Daily Chart: A Penny for BLM’s Thoughts

Featured imageAfter the acquittal of Daniel Penny, Black Lives Matter radicals took to the microphones threatening violence against whites. From their bearing, you’d think there was a wave of white-on-black violence unseen since the lynchings that took place when Democrats ran the South. In fact, the statistics about black-on-white homicide are jarring. This chart is a little hard to understand until your disaggregate its moving parts, but the bottom line is »
December 13, 2024 — Scott Johnson

So long is too good a word

Featured imageEarlier this week President Biden wandered up the street from the White House to the Brookings Institution. At Brookings Biden regurgitated the talking points he has cited in support of his economic record. The White House has posted the text of his speech under the groaning title Remarks by President Biden on His Middle-Out, Bottom-Up Economic Playbook.” I have posted the Reuters video at the bottom. Biden was introduced by »
December 13, 2024 — Scott Johnson

A fair chance, ProPublica style

Featured imageYesterday I took a long look at ProPublica’s effort to nail Pete Hegseth’s nomination as Secretary of Defense with a story that turned out to be false. When Hegseth preempted ProPublica with evidence rebutting the story, ProPublica editor Jesse Eisinger patted himself on the back for his and their exemplary “journalism.” In part 4 of his self-congratulatory 11-part X thread, Eisinger proclaimed: “You must give the subject of a potential »
December 13, 2024 — Scott Johnson

Thoughts from the ammo line

Featured imageSomeone has GREAT EXPECTATIONS. Ammo Grrrll writes: Included on my refrigerator, amidst the pictures of Other People’s Cute Grandchildren, is a little inspirational saying by E. B. White: “Always be on the lookout for the presence of wonder.” As is my custom when I arise, I say my morning prayers, thanking God for returning my soul from His overnight guarding of it and asking for prayers for healing for a »
December 12, 2024 — John Hinderaker

Kudos to Floyd!

Featured imageFloyd Mayweather is one of the greatest boxers of all time. A defensive genius, he won titles in five weight classes and retired undefeated–a nearly impossible thing to do in the most elemental of all sports. Floyd has never claimed to be an intellectual, but you can’t be the best in the world at anything, including athletics, if you are stupid. It turns out that Mayweather has a strong affinity »
December 12, 2024 — Steven Hayward

The Daily Chart: Cat vs. Dog Owners and the Election

Featured imageJ.D. Vance’s old comment about the country being dominated by single cat ladies still has (dog) legs (heh). There is something to it, though. Sure enough, “cat ladies” voted more for Harris than Trump (while male cat owners managed to make the right choice), while female dog owners went for Trump. (As it happens, I am as allergic to cats as I am to Democrats, so this is an easy »
December 12, 2024 — Scott Johnson

Sowell strikes again

Featured imageBari Weiss interviewed UK Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch at length in the hour-plus video below. The video is posted here at the Free Press with an introduction by Bari. I have also posted the video below. At about 12:00, Bari asks Badenoch if she read any books that influenced her intellectual evolution. Good question! If Thomas Sowell came to mind, as it did to mine, you are correct. Badenoch »
December 11, 2024 — John Hinderaker

Real Conservatism At Last?

Featured imageI have been saying for a long time that you can vote for conservatism, but you can’t get it. Government grows and regulations multiply, inexorably and independent of any will expressed by voters. But maybe that is about to change. In some ways, you wouldn’t expect Donald Trump to be the president who finally delivers real conservatism to the voters. But, if you are willing to indulge some optimism, that »
December 11, 2024 — Steven Hayward

The Daily Chart: The Failure of Obamacare

Featured imageOver on my Political Questions Substack, I take up afresh the parallel between Luigi Mangione and Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, whom Mangione apparently admired.  Here I want to take up the fact that many people on the left are cheering Mangione because of their hatred of health insurance companies who are said to deny coverage, because of course health care should be free, just like Taylor Swift concert tickets. »
December 11, 2024 — Scott Johnson

DeJoy of the USPS

Featured imageLouis DeJoy is the 75th postmaster general. He was appointed in May 2020 by the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service. If he’s thinking about writing a memoir, I could see possible sales for one titled DeJoy of Sex, but DeJoy of the USPS will probably have to do. Maybe DeJoy of Sex at the USPS would be a possibility. However, DeJoy was gone when he testified »
December 12, 2024 — John Hinderaker

What’s Underground

Featured imageChina claims to have discovered the world’s largest deposit of gold: China is claiming to have unearthed the largest gold deposit in the world — estimated to be worth more than $80 billion. More than 1,000 tons of gold reserves and ore veins were allegedly discovered by geologists from the Hunan Provincial Geological Institute some 12 miles beneath the surface in China’s Pingjiang County, according to China state media. The »
December 12, 2024 — Scott Johnson

This is your life, Antony Blinken

Featured imageSecretary of State Antony Blinken testified yesterday before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on the catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan. Blinken is a complete and utter tool. He is of course the guy who solicited the corrupt statement signed by the Dirty 51 impugning the authenticity of the evidence found on Hunter Biden’s laptop. That may have been a stroke of evil genius, but Blinken sounds like the man who taught »
December 12, 2024 — Scott Johnson

ProPublica’s missing West Point story

Featured imageProPublica styles itself a public interest media organization. It allegedly pursues investigative journalism and news in the public interest. A disinterested observer might modify “in the public interest” to “in the interest of the Democratic Party.” So what is the difference between ProPublica and the rest of the corporate media? It is organized as a nonprofit and funded by left-wing foundations with money to burn. This week ProPublica joined the »
December 11, 2024 — John Hinderaker

Now They Tell Us!

Featured imageIn today’s morning email, the New York Times lays out the basic facts relating to immigration to the U.S. The email is titled: “The largest immigration surge in U.S. history.” 1. The immigration surge since 2021 has been the largest in U.S. history, surpassing even the levels of the late 1800s and early 1900s. Total net migration — the number of people coming to the country minus the number leaving »
December 11, 2024 — John Hinderaker

By Reason of Insanity

Featured imageLuigi Mangione is obviously guilty of murdering Brian Thompson, so, as his lawyers search for a defense, insanity is sure to come to mind. Insanity defenses rarely succeed, perhaps because anyone who commits a murder for which he is almost certain to be caught and punished is, in the popular sense of the word, “crazy.” The legal definition of insanity is necessarily much higher. There may be another problem with »
December 11, 2024 — Scott Johnson

A Speck in time

Featured imageCertain denizens of elite precincts are celebrating the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson by Luigi Mangione. UnitedHealthCare is UnitedHealth Group’s insurance arm. They see Thompson’s murder as a blow against the system of health care and health insurance to which the left itself has contributed. Their celebration seems crazier than Mangione. The sick streak running through our elites grows wider every day. DISGUSTING: On a poll of 634 UPenn »