The People Who Walked in Darkness have
Seen Great Light

The above caveat about government unions – usually known by the kinder and gentler “public employee unions” – was not issued by the Koch Brothers or Donald Trump. The statement was made by none other than progressive icon Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Additionally, George Meany, president of the AFL-CIO for 24 years, once stated, “It is impossible to bargain collectively with the government.” Both men understood that the very nature of government makes it wrong for its leaders to enter into negotiations with any union

In a tearful reading of what would have been her victory speech if Donald Trump had not defeated her in 2016, Miranda Devine said Hillary Clinton is begging Democrats to consider her again with her “masterclass in self-pity and delusion.” MIRANDA DEVINE: “I think it tells you more about the state of the Democratic Party than it does about poor America, that they are even considering Hillary Clinton, that she isn’t just being laughed out of school for popping her head up above the parapet, from so desperately and so obviously having her hand up and saying “pick me, take me!” The master class, so-called, that she gave the other day

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone. You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing,

It’s Christmas. The Lord’s angel who announced the good news of the world’s Savior and commanded the shepherds to be not afraid spoke not only to them but to us as well. The advent of Christ, the logos (word, reason) of God made flesh, doesn’t just render fear superfluous. The incarnation of the second person of the Blessed Trinity unequivocally forbids indulgence of, as Paul refers to it, “the spirit of fear.”

The Biden White House on Tuesday expressed openness to working with Republican Sen. Mitt Romney on child tax credit payments, after the Utah lawmaker called for a bipartisan approach on the issue. “We’re going to work with anybody who’s interested in taking steps to lower costs for the American people, whether it’s on child care or elder care or healthcare,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters, when asked about Romney’s recent statement. Romney has proposed a program similar to the monthly CTC payouts that look set to end due to opposition from Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia

Aaron Rodgers still isn’t a fan of “cancel culture.” The Packers quarterback showed up to his weekly appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” Tuesday, wearing a black sweatshirt with the words “Cancel Culture” crossed out on the front. He modeled the message two months after he expressed his frustration on the show in October. The sweatshirt, Rodgers previously noted, was a gift from Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy.

As he challenges Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for the state’s top law enforcement post, Land Commissioner George P. Bush has expanded his agency’s traditionally limited role in border security and immigration, top issues for Republican primary voters. Bush, who met with law enforcement officials and residents along the border earlier this month on a four-day “Secure the Border” tour, also ventured onto Paxton’s turf

The United States on Dec. 16 placed trade and investment restrictions on dozens of Chinese entities over their role in weaponizing biotechnology and other U.S. innovations in order to bolster the Chinese military and to further its human rights abuses. Among the 34 Chinese entities targeted was the Academy of Military Medical Sciences—China’s top medical research institute run by the Chinese military—alongside its 11 research institutes, for aiding the Chinese military with biotechnology, including “purported brain-control weaponry,” the department stated without elaborating on the technology.

Much has been written over the past year about how Amazon treats its warehouse workers and other employees and its attempts to prevent their unionization. But the mistreatment of Amazon’s labor force is far from the only negative effect of having once-thriving mom-and-pop shops gobbled up by or placed at the mercy of a faceless e-commerce leviathan. Amazon’s ascent means that more and more Americans are losing their commercial autonomy, the right to dictate and introduce innovations into the terms of their own transactions and business relations, and, ultimately, their ability to control their financial—and, therefore, personal—destinies.

In November, Secretary of State Antony Blinken removed Nigeria from the State Department’s list of countries hostile to religious freedom. The move flabbergasted religious freedom advocates, including members of the U.S. government’s own Commission on International Religious Freedom. That commission had urged Blinken in April to keep Nigeria on the list, pointing to “violence by militant Islamists and other non-state armed actors, as well as discrimination, arbitrary detentions, and capital blasphemy sentences by state authorities” in the country. In 2020, the Trump administration designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) on religious freedom.

Last week in this space, I included a few words about Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s remarkable new book, The Real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates, Big Pharma, and the Global War on Democracy and Public Health. I also included a link to Kennedy’s appearance on “Tucker Carlson Today.” It was a remarkable exchange and I commend both the book and the interview to your attention. I disagree with Kennedy about various things, including the efficacy of vaccines in general, but his assessment of the highest-paid employee of the federal government, Anthony Fauci, is worth the price of admission.

During an interview with Wall Street Journal reporter Joanna Stern on Monday, tech mogul and entrepreneur Elon Musk said “civilization is going to crumble” if declining birth rates continue. The population trend—coined a ‘demographic winter’ by social scientists—has steadily worsened over recent decades, primarily in first-world countries. “There are not enough people,” the 50-year-old father of six said. “I can’t emphasize this enough, there are not enough people.” Musk pointed out a widely understood assumption, that labor is “the foundation of the economy,” and without labor, production and growth are severely compromised.