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ess than 24 hours after a US drone shockingly killed the leader of the top Iranian military leader, Qasem Soleimani, resulting in equity markets groaning around the globe in fear over Iranian reprisals, the US has gone for round two with Reuters and various other social media sources reporting that US air strikes targeting Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units umbrella grouping of Iran-backed Shi’ite militias near camp Taji north of Baghdad, have killed six people and critically wounded three, an Iraqi army source said late on Friday.

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I love the smell of conspiracy in the morning.

I’ll bet the bars have swastikas on them. Just sayin’.

Catching the Alarmists in a Baldfaced Sea Level Lie

Amazon Reportedly Censors Employees Over Environmentalism

Climate Hysterics Wrong Again

Protests Follow German State Broadcast Showing Kids Singing About Grandmas Being “Environmental Pigs” For Eating Meat

Models Confirm “The Day After Tomorrow” Was Bad Science Fiction

Amazon threatened to fire employees for speaking out on climate, workers say

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Born in obscurity, frustrated in youth, the dictator rises through accident, patronage or anything except merit to blossom into a fully fledged evil-doer, desperate for the respect and admiration that are wrung from the populace only by skilled PR manipulation. Often feigning modesty, he soon generates a cult that he personally develops. Women and even brave men feel overcome in his presence; schoolchildren chant the praise of the father of the nation; artists and writers deify the great leader. Dictators generally come equipped with an ideology, but since they have no principles, only a lust for power, the process of propagation turns it into a mockery.

Any resemblance to Barack “The Magic Negro” Obama is, of course, purely coincidental.

Victor Davis Hanson.

The Washington Post recently published a surprising indictment of MSNBC host, Stanford graduate, and Rhodes scholar Rachel Maddow.

Post media critic Erik Wemple wrote that Maddow deliberately misled her audience by claiming the now-discredited Steele dossier was largely verifiable—even at a time when there was plenty of evidence that it was mostly bogus.

At the very time Maddow was reassuring viewers that Christopher Steele was believable, populist talk radio and the much-criticized Fox News Channel were insisting that most of Steele’s allegations simply could not be true. Maddow was wrong. Her less degreed critics proved to be right.

All the credentials in the world won’t help you if you are a congenital fool.

Whenever you encounter somebody playing the credentials card, remember Rachel Maddow.

Glacier National Park quietly removed ‘Gone by 2020’ signs in 2019—Update

Unprecedented and Worrying Rise in Sea Levels Poses Serious Threat to Coastal Cities

CNN Climate Expert: “Shouting into the apocalypse”… because climate change

JoNova: Aussie ABC Disappearing Evidence They Helped Climate Activists Campaign Against Controlled Burns

Noam Chomsky on the Climate Crisis  Jeez, is he still alive?

Joel Kotkin is pessimistic.

Is America about to suffer its Weimar moment, culminating in the collapse of its republican institutions? Our democracy may be far more rooted than that of Germany’s first republic, which fell in 1933 to Adolf Hitler, but there are disturbing similarities.

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“I don’t feel the difference,” Jang, who has been using a 5G-enabled Samsung handset, told the WSJ. In fact, on many days he switches off his 5G service altogether because his connection often drops as his phone pingpongs between 5G and the existing 4G LTE network.

Very disappointing.

Steve Sailer.

n the last few years, we’ve all been lectured about how the biggest crisis in K-12 public schools is Segregation: not enough Students of Color go to majority white public schools.

But then there is also the crisis of Integration or Too Many White Students, as the New York Times explained today in an enormously long article about Young Women of Color’s hurt feelings to start off the new decade on a wholly different note from the media obsessions of the last seven years….

Steve Sailer.

As we’ve all been lectured lately, a great failing of American public schools is that not enough Students of Color go to white-majority schools. This is known as Segregation. We need to bus white students all over the place so that Students of Color won’t be exposed to the sheer hell of going to a school that is majority Student of Color.

The Washington Post follows up on the crisis of Not Enough White Students with a big article about the crisis of Too Many White Teachers. We must rescue Students of Color from the sheer hell of going to a school that is minority Teacher of Color.

BP Boss: Daughter’s Friends on Anti-Depressants Because of Climate Change

Subsidizing The Epocalypse

Read it.

Think of it as evolution in action.

Tyler Cowen has a theory.

Having tracked the libertarian “movement” for much of my life, I believe it is now pretty much hollowed out, at least in terms of flow. One branch split off into Ron Paul-ism and less savory alt right directions, and another, more establishment branch remains out there in force but not really commanding new adherents. For one thing, it doesn’t seem that old-style libertarianism can solve or even very well address a number of major problems, most significantly climate change. For another, smart people are on the internet, and the internet seems to encourage synthetic and eclectic views, at least among the smart and curious. Unlike the mass culture of the 1970s, it does not tend to breed “capital L Libertarianism.” On top of all that, the out-migration from narrowly libertarian views has been severe, most of all from educated women.

Read it.

During colonial times, European powers exploited Africa for the vast resources that it possesses. But what China is doing today is actually much worse. Yes, the Chinese greatly desire African resources, but ultimately what they want is Africa itself. But instead of conquering Africa using military force, China is using economics instead. Today, more than 10,000 Chinese-owned firms are operating in Africa, and virtually every major road, bridge, railway and skyscraper is being built by the Chinese. As a result, most African nations are very deeply indebted to China at this point. And as you will see below, when those debts go bad that gives the Chinese a tremendous amount of leverage.

Climate Prediction Swings & Misses: A Decade Of Alarmist Strike-Outs, 2010-2019

Prince William launches The Earthshot Prize – the ‘most prestigious environmental prize in history’

It’s Not Just You—Wild Swings in Extreme Weather Are Rising  Wired ‘Science’

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Illinois’ population decreased in 2019 by an estimated 51,250 people, or 0.4%, marking the sixth consecutive year the state has lost residents, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Since the turn of the decade, Illinois has lost more residents than any other state, with a drop of about 159,700 people, or 1.2% of its population. Only three other states have shrunk since 2010: Connecticut, Vermont and West Virginia — with West Virginia losing the largest share of its residents, a 3.3% decline.

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New York was one of only 10 states to suffer a total population decline in 2018-19 — its fourth consecutive annual decrease after five years of growth, and the largest population drop of any state.

Only West Virginia, Alaska and Illinois saw their populations fall at a faster percentage clip.

The Cartoonish Climate Crusade

Alan Titchmarsh: Eco-warriors should not preach while block-paving gardens and eating avocados

‘You have utterly no clue’: why ‘climate emergency’ is Australia’s ultimate outrage trigger

Columbia University’s Ten Climate Change Exaggerations

Greta Thunberg’s Parents Went Green to ‘Save’ Their Daughter  Save her for what? Mental disorder?

Study: Climate change lessons are rare at medical schools A shame because, of course, that’s the most important thing for them to learn in med school.

Worst Scenario for Climate Change Doesn’t Look ‘Realistic,’ Says Bloomberg News

A Wind Turbine’s Blades Fly Off In New York City, Crushing A Billboard And Vehicle

Biden Proposes Putting Fossil Fuel Execs ‘In Jail’ Over The Climate

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Funny how Democrats don’t appreciate being treated the way Republicans are usually treated by Democrats.

Read it. And watch the video.

This short video is suddenly everywhere. It comes from a livestream of the service at the church near Fort Worth where someone opened fire on parishioners with what looks like a shotgun. He was immediately shot by two legally armed persons, one of whom reportedly was a security guard. It appears that altogether, there were six people who immediately pulled guns in response to the shooter.

UPDATE: This Firearms Instructor Is Reportedly The Hero Who Killed Texas Church Gunman With Single Head Shot

Scientific American: Even Believers Must be Compelled to Live Low Carbon Lifestyles

Awkward: BBC Crew Flew to Interview Climate Brat Greta Thunberg  Cue finger wag.

Climate alarmist banks go carbon-colonialist

The Guardian: “Climate Denial was Defeated in 2019”

French cheeses at risk of falling foul of global warming as cows lack fresh grass

‘Former Trump Voter’ Spotlighted In Democratic Ad Campaign Caught Lying; Didn’t Actually Vote In 2016

Cohen: How Impeachment Is Escalating The New US-Russian Cold War

On NPR, David Brooks Says Democrats Are ‘Crazy’ to Think Trump Can Win in 2020

Four-Star U.S. Army General Slams Trump’s Behavior in Navy SEAL Controversy

Trump attacks whistleblower in tweetstorm full of rants and conspiracies  CNN.

NBC Reporter on MSNBC: ‘Cruel’ & ‘Disturbing’ That Mexico Keeps Illegals Out of U.S.

CNN’s Wajahat Ali: GOP Will Popularize ‘White Supremacist Conspiracy Theories’ in 2020

‘They Had A Weak Case’: Steve Scalise Rips House Democrats’ Impeachment Effort

Twitter Scrubs Viral Trump Retweet Of Alleged Hoaxblower’s Name; Blames Glitch Before Banning User  Bias? What bias?

Science Under Attack: How Trump Is Sidelining Researchers and Their Work  Scientific researchers have an inalienable right to have the taxpayers fund their research (and careers), and Trump (the swine) is standing in the way. Burn the witch!

Chuck Todd Cites Letter That Compares Supporting Trump To Believing In ‘Fairy Tales’ Like ‘Noah’s Ark’

Chuck Todd Finds All the Disinformation In ‘Ecosystem Problem’ on the Right

CBS Reporter Says Trump’s Record With Minorities Is One ‘Any President After 3 Years Would Want To Claim’

New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio Blames Anti-Semitic Attacks On Hate ‘Emanating From Washington’ Yeah, New York haz to import hate from Washington because they don’t have any of their own.

Desperately Seeking Regretful Trump Voters

Read it.

historic motion has been passed in Spain by the city council in León demanding the separation of the province from the region of Castilla y León, which was formed in 1983 shortly after Spain returned to democracy after the death of General Franco.

“We’ve never felt ourselves to be part of Castilla y León. It’s a fictitious region; León has nothing to do with Castile,” said the Leonese mayor, José Antonio Díez.

After Friday’s vote in León city hall, several other towns across the province followed suit, demanding that what they consider a historic region comprising León, Salamanca and Zamora split away from Castilla y León.

And the seams start coming apart.

Read it.

While it is a truism that in many respects some form of taxation is needed to provide necessities to a society, in practice many government and social detriments arise as either a consequence to or are derivative of tax policy. I’ve found for myself that fostering a personal goal of avoiding specific taxation or in many cases excessive taxation generally comports with a greater advocacy of morality in several beneficial forms.

Read it.

Fire is extremely versatile: it’s hard to say which of its functions were most valued by our ancestors. Therefore, if we measure the energy use of a household fire and compare it to modern technology, we should not compare it to the energy use of a heating system or a cooking stove alone, but to the energy use of the entire household.

Sometimes the old ways are best.

Steve Sailer.

Steve loves pointing out when supposed adults in the ‘mainstream press’ think and write like adolescents. In most cases it is enough merely to quote what they say, from which any rational adult can sniff out the problems.

Audacious Epigone reports.

Though I have no illusions about where Stephens stands, his column is a tremendous conversation starter. As such, it was immediately subject to relentless attack in corporate and social media. The contemporary meaning of “conversation” is not a form of interactive communication. It is instead a novel blend of the traditional definitions of the words “monologue”, “lecture”, and “sermon”.

Your electric car and vegetarian diet are pointless virtue signaling in the fight against climate change

Climate Change Protesters’ Traffic Tie-Ups Are No Way to Win Friends or Influence People

FT: Low Interest Rates are an Opportunity to Spend Big on Renewable Energy

Report Hyped By Climate Alarmists Warned: Millions Dead, Nuclear War, & Sunken Major Cities By 2020

What Can You See, Indicating Sea Levels are Rising?

Mozambique Is Racing to Adapt to Climate Change. The Weather Is Winning

The Other McCain has the scoop.

Remember the deadly Dec. 10 attack just across the river in Jersey City, which was connected to the Black Hebrew Israelites cult. This followed months of reports of anti-Semitic harassment in New York perpetrated by black teenagers. Because the suspects were “people of color” (POC), these hate crimes were an embarrassment to the Left, which wants to blame Trump for increasing anti-Semitism. This is why the national news media, which goes into 24/7 coverage mode over any “hate crime” that can be blamed on right-wingers, politely ignored the increasing reports of black hoodlums harassing Jews in New York City. The progressive SJW backlash against De Blasio’s announcement was predictable.

Read it.

That’s what happens when your state is run by Democrats.

The Nation: Warming Is Reason to Question Private Homeownership  As if they ever needed a reason.

Experts Warn Global Outrage Levels May Reach Point Of No Return In 2020  Babylon Bee.

Another year, and still no increase in severe U.S. tornadoes

Ace of Spades has the scoop.

The New York Times is full of people who think that they ought to be able to do your thinking for you.

Read it.

Just keepin’ track….

Read it.

Some rich people are more equal than others.

UPDATE: Ocasio-Cortez Says Refusing To Be Funded By Billionaires Is ‘Having Standards’ — She Took The Max From Steyer In 2018

Read it.

Scientists tested airplane sewage from five different German airports and discovered it contained a significantly higher abundance and diversity of antibiotic-resistant microbes, compared to sewage tested at a nearby wastewater plant and even nearby hospitals, according to research published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

Slow news week.

Petition: Stop Target Plastic Bags From ‘Choking the Earth’

Former Archbishop of Canterbury warns climate change is the ‘largest challenge’ ever faced by humanity  I guess Hitler, Stalin, and Mao don’t count.

Wet Years, Dry Years

Democrats Seek To Outlaw Suburban, Single-Family House Zoning, Calling It Racist And Bad For The Environment

A vet’s hellish diary of climate change

Ace of Spades travels into some odd corners of the zeitgeist.

Blue ticks are shocked that Christians aren’t sobbing and rending garments in their churches over liberal magazine Christianity Today (the Christianity Today?) calling for Trump’s removal from office.

…

Also evidence of the Cognitive Elite’s cerebral supremacy: John Harwood, selected by the media as an impartial questioner for a Republican debate (and who secretly solicited questions from the Democrat National Committee to ask Trump), says that the media is too biased in favor of Republicans….

Read it.

In my opinion, a trial is unnecessary. The House articles, on their face, are defective. Both fail to meet the constitutional threshold of “high crimes and misdemeanors.” This would negate a trial but does not give the president any formal “acquittal,” after a trial on the merits of the articles, which would prove the president’s innocence. While this would be true in a traditional criminal judicial proceeding, it is not the case in a political trial. No matter how the Senate deals with the articles of impeachment, Democrats and Republicans will put their own political spin on the outcome. Since the House articles of impeachment were voted strictly on party lines, and the country is so divided on the whole impeachment process, in my opinion, a trial is less important.

Bradley A. Blakeman was a deputy assistant to President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2004. A principal of the 1600 Group, a strategic communications firm, he is an adjunct professor of public policy and international affairs at Georgetown University and a contributor to Fox News and Fox Business.

3 degrees C?

Were the predictions we made about climate change 20 years ago accurate? Here’s a look USA Today.

Read it.

And about time, too.

Read it.

Ahh, it’s that time again: reportedly the most wonderful time of the year. You’re back home, no longer in your drafty dorm room eating lukewarm ramen out of a microwaved Tupperware bowl. You’re with your family. You’re surrounded by sleigh bells, carolers, a warm and glowing Christmas tree, gifts on Christmas day.

Well, forget about all that. That’s all a bunch of cultural hegemony and male patrio-fascism. Christmas is not a good thing. Christmas is not Woke. It must be cancelled and forever banished to the dust-bin of history, along with other hegemonic colonial hatefests such as Thanksgiving and Valentine’s Day.