Not in our Stars, but in Ourselves
Posted By: EQKimball, 3/30/2021 11:33:24 AM
The late Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin used to tell a story of imprisonment, based perhaps on his own. He said that once behind bars, the prisoner thinks of nothing but freedom, of escaping. Because of this, cruelly sophisticated jailers introduce water into the cell. Now, the enslaved puts freedom off for the moment, seeking first to get rid of the water. From there, the jailers add cockroaches to the poor soul’s misery. Liberty is back-burnered.
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Not in our Stars, but in Ourselves
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The late Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin used to tell a story of imprisonment, based perhaps on his own. He said that once behind bars, the prisoner thinks of nothing but freedom, of escaping. Because of this, cruelly sophisticated jailers introduce water into the cell. Now, the enslaved puts freedom off for the moment, seeking first to get rid of the water. From there, the jailers add cockroaches to the poor soul’s misery. Liberty is back-burnered.
The settled science of 'shut up'
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Ronald Reagan famously said, "The trouble with our liberal friends isn't that they're ignorant. It's that they know so much that isn't so." This might be the only thing our friends on the left have in common with yesterday's liberals. The earlier breed at least gave lip service to the value of free speech and vigorous debate. [Snip] Newsrooms and classrooms eagerly ban words that give newly discovered offense. Inevitably, the ideas the words conveyed disappear. Libraries and retailers ban the books they're found in. And we have only ourselves to blame.
Dean Martin used to end his weekly variety show by inviting his television audience, in that faux-drunken drawl, "Keep those cards and letters coming in..." I was too young at the time to understand, but it was practical political advice. [Snip] I know what you're thinking: we are conservatives, we don't do boycotts. But is it really a boycott to stop doing business with those who actively work to defeat the principles you hold dear?
Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York says that it’s “shocking” to discover that 66 percent of new hospitalizations appear to have been among people “largely sheltering at home. We thought maybe they were taking public transportation,” he said, “but actually no, because these people were literally at home.” (Snip) There’s a reason that “social distancing” wasn’t a buzzword common to the American lexicon prior to 2020. There’s very little science behind “social distancing” at all.
The idea that the worldwide lockdown of virtually every country other than Sweden may have been an enormous mistake... (Snip) One of the thousands of unpaid garment workers protesting the lockdown in Bangladesh understands the situation better than almost any health official in the world: "We are starving. If we don't have food in our stomach, what's the use of observing this lockdown?" But concern for that Bangladeshi worker among the world's elites seems nonexistent.
The loss of television and ad revenue from the suspension of sports due to the coronavirus, will end up costing at least $12 billion, according to a recent analysis conducted for ESPN. Those numbers, however, could become even dramatically worse if the college football and NFL seasons are seriously impacted by the virus. “As an economist, you stand back, you look at the carnage that’s taking place — dumbfounded, awestruck, mind-numbing,” said Patrick Rishe, who heads-up the sports business program at Washington University.
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. dumped its stakes in the four largest U.S. airlines but the billionaire investor remains deeply exposed to the collapse in air travel.
Berkshire still owns all of Precision Castparts Corp., a supplier of aerospace parts that’s bracing for lean times as Boeing Co. and Airbus SE cut jetliner production. Berkshire bought Precision Castparts in 2016 in a transaction valued at $37.2 billion, making it one of Buffett’s biggest deals. (Snip) With carriers predicting that flying won’t return to 2019 levels for as long as three years, aerospace suppliers are hunkering down for a protracted slump.
Walt Disney Co. has long treated its parks workforce like an extended family, calling them “cast members” to emphasize their importance to the team. That’s one reason why the company’s decision to furlough more than 100,000 employees amid the coronavirus crisis has become one of the most visible signs of the economic devastation from COVID-19. (Snip)
Since the outbreak, its resorts have been shuttered, its blockbuster productions have stalled, and there have been no live sports for cable channel ESPN to cover.
For Charles Vavruska, it was nothing short of a miracle cure. Days after the 53-year-old City Council staffer arrived at New York Presbyterian-Queens hospital barely able to breathe and tested positive for COVID-19, doctors started him on the controversial drug cocktail of hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial, and azithromycin, an antibiotic. Although Vavruska said he felt almost immediately better, he wishes the urgent-care doctor he went to see in the early days of his flu-like symptoms in mid-March could have prescribed a similar treatment before he grew progressively worse and ended up in a hospital room, hooked up to an oxygen tank and fighting for his life.
Major hospitals in New York, Louisiana and other areas hit hardest by the coronavirus outbreak are routinely using hydroxychloroquine on patients hospitalized with COVID-19, though robust evidence on whether it works is weeks, if not months, away. (Snip) UCLA has been advising doctors since mid-March to consider hydroxychloroquine for seriously ill COVID-19 patients. "Our recommendation is based on limiting usage, allowing it as a Hail Mary-type treatment for patients who are very sick," said Dr. Otto Yang, an infectious disease specialist.
New York county executives want Cuomo to lift
restrictions on hydroxychloroquine treatment 13 replies
restrictions on hydroxychloroquine treatment 13 replies
New York county executives want access to the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine that Gov. Andrew Cuomo conceded showed early “effective” responses in COVID-19 virus patients in current clinical trials, which he began allowing within the state two weeks ago. The Democratic governor told reporters at his daily briefing in Albany on Monday he would ask President Trump to raise the federal supply of hydroxychloroquine to New York pharmacies. (Snip) New York county executives, according to Steve McLaughlin of Rensselaer County, have discussed the issue of with one another and wondered why Cuomo prohibited the treatment from being dispensed to different parts of the state.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said Monday that early responses to the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine "anecdotally" suggest its use in the coronavirus fight has been "effective," but that official data was still forthcoming. Asked about the progress of the trials at his daily press briefing, Cuomo noted that state officials have allowed use of the drug in combination with the antibiotic Zithromax in hospitals "at their discretion." (Snip) "There has been anecdotal evidence that it is promising; that's why we're going ahead," he added, noting that some patients have a pre-existing condition or medication regimen that prevents them from taking it.
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President Biden will not throw the ceremonial first pitch on Thursday’s opening day at Nationals Park, a team spokesperson confirmed. “We look forward to welcoming President Biden to Nationals Park in the future,” a team spokesperson told The Washington Post, which first reported the news. A reason for why Biden will not throw the first pitch wasn’t provided. A team spokesperson told the Washington Times a decision on who will throw Thursday’s first pitch will be released at a later time. The tradition of presidents throwing out the first pitch began with President William Howard Taft in 1910, appearing at opening day for the Washington Senators
Cher Rages Over Georgia Voter Integrity Law:
Republican Politicians Are ‘Evil, Soulless, Bigots’ 44 replies
Republican Politicians Are ‘Evil, Soulless, Bigots’ 44 replies
Cher is the latest Hollywood celebrity to explode over Georgia’s new voter integrity law, claiming inaccurately that the law takes away voting rights of black Americans. She also lashed out at Republican lawmakers, calling them “evil” and “bigots.”
In an emotional tweet on Sunday, the actress and pop star accused Republicans of stripping the voting rights of black people and depriving them of “racial and economic equity.”
Cher wrote that Republican politicians are “infected” with a “deadly pandemic of their own making.” They are “evil, soulless, bigots” and “don’t care.”
Washington—Doggie doo in the White House? One of President Joe Biden’s dogs apparently deposited the pile of poo in the hallway outside the Diplomatic Reception Room, just off the South Lawn, on Wednesday. Reporters accompanying Jill Biden on a trip to California spotted the brown stuff on the red-carpeted hallway as they waited just inside the mansion to be escorted to the first lady’s motorcade. It was unclear which pooch—Major or Champ—dropped the poo. Earlier this week, Major, the younger dog, was involved in his second biting incident in March. Michael LaRosa, a spokesperson for Jill Biden,
Appearing on the radio talk show of conservative radio host Laura Ingraham today, former President Jimmy Carter said he believes the Democratic Party should moderate its position on abortion, which it currently supports without limits and funded at taxpayer expense.Carter said toning down the stridently pro-abortion position would help win back Republicans who abandoned the Democrats because of abortion and other liberal social issue positions.Carter said:“I never have believed that Jesus Christ would approve of abortions and that was one of the problems I had when I was president having to uphold Roe v. Wade
Van Jones: If Chauvin Not Convicted in Floyd
Trial, America Will Be in a ‘Dangerous Position’ 40 replies
Trial, America Will Be in a ‘Dangerous Position’ 40 replies
CNN political commentator Van Jones said Monday on CNN’s “Cuomo Prime Time” that if former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin were not found guilty of killing George Floyd, America would be in a “dangerous position as a country.”Jones said, “Everybody I’m talking to are frustrated, re-triggered, re-traumatized. Seeing that video, seeing the complete contempt for life. You have a generation of African-Americans and their allies — I’m talking this entire young generation—that is watching this to see if America — listen, the system is on trial here.
The CEO of Georgia-based Delta Air Lines said Wednesday that the state’s new election law overhaul is “unacceptable” and “based on a lie,” after the company faced criticism that it didn’t speak out forcefully enough in opposition to the bill when it was being considered by the state’s Republican leaders. CEO Ed Bastian offered his assessment of the new Georgia law in a memo sent to employees less than a week after Delta officials joined other corporate lobbyists to shape the final version of a sweeping measure that could make it harder for some Georgia citizens to cast ballots.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is condemning the use of the term "surge" when discussing the ongoing border crisis at the southern border. "They wanna say, 'But what about the surge?'" Ocasio-Cortez said on Tuesday night during an Instagram Live session. "Well, first of all, just gut check, stop. Anyone who's using the term 'surge' around you consciously is trying to invoke a militaristic frame." "And that's a problem because this is not a surge, these are children and they are not insurgents and we are not being invaded, which by the way is a White supremacist idea-philosophy
The Bidens' dog Major has been involved in another biting incident that required medical attention, two people with knowledge of the incident tell CNN. The incident, which involved a National Park Service employee, took place on the White House South Lawn on Monday afternoon. The employee was working at the time and needed to stop in order to receive treatment from the White House medical unit. First lady Jill Biden's press secretary Michael LaRosa told CNN that Major is "still adjusting to his new surroundings." "Yes, Major nipped someone on a walk. Out of an abundance of caution, the individual was seen by WHMU
The meaning behind
Kamala's cackle 34 replies
Kamala's cackle 34 replies
Video emerged of Kamala Harris recently speaking about the problems parents face when their schools are closed but they can’t afford childcare. This is a serious issue with massive repercussions for children’s development and for working mothers. So what did Kamala do? She cracked herself up (snip) If you look up “inappropriate laughter” a few things pop up. It turns out that it can be a nervous system disorder called Pseudobulbar affect (aka emotional incontinence) (snip) In other words, in addition to a president sliding into dementia, we could have a vice president with a neurological disorder.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Republicans “gun worshipers,” who are “shameless” because of their “huge advantage” due to the filibuster.“You know, democracy is the balancing of interests and rights, and unfortunately at this time, the gun worshipers have a huge advantage because of the filibuster and because of their shameless exploitation of people’s unwarranted fears,” Hillary Clinton said.“The opportunists on the other side, like Cruz and his ilk,” she continued, “they know better and they are in the position of trying to keep people really riled up and scared that sensible gun legislation like we had in the ‘90s for 10 years
Russian forces massing on the border with Ukraine have prompted the U.S. European Command to raise its watch level to its highest point of “potential imminent crisis”, according to a New York Times report Tuesday night. On Wednesday, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley spoke to senior Russian Gen. Valery Gerasimov about the buildup, according to Russia. Four Ukrainian soldiers were killed last week in an extended battle in the contested Donetsk Region against Russia-backed separatists. Russian forces that were thought to have gathered for training exercises near the border have stayed and grown in numbers, prompting concerns. Under Presidents
Not an April fool’s joke, but it might as well be. Two media reports [Here and Here] about former VP Mike Pence considering a potential run for President in 2024 present the most laughable political hypothetical in recent memory. Particularly, and specifically, because even President Trump would likely not include Pence in a short list of people for endorsement.“WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump recently rattled off the names of those he viewed as future leaders of the Republican Party, including Sens. Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz along with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Conspicuously absent from the list: Mike Pence.
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Who will lead us out of our present slavery? Do not wait for another Moses. “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars / But in ourselves, that we are underlings” (Julius Caesar, Act I, Scene III, L. 140-141).