Posts on Sunday, March 12, 2023
Prince Andrew has been left “bewildered” that he has not yet received any inheritance from Queen Elizabeth II, royal sources have claimed. After the Queen’s death last September, her £650 million Duchy of Lancaster estate was automatically left to King Charles. However, Prince Andrew, 63, is said to have told friends he feels “despair” that the King has not shared any of his new wealth among his siblings. According to the Daily Mail, Prince Andrew feels an amount of “resentment” at the situation.
General Motors vowed to surpass Tesla as the number one EV maker in the U.S., and its plans look rock solid on paper. In reality, the carmaker is struggling to produce the GMC Hummer EV and Cadillac Lyriq, its Ultium-based EVs, in significant numbers. To make matters worse, GM has announced a voluntary separation program to trim its workforce. I once believed that GM had everything needed for a successful EV program. The Detroit carmaker invested billions in overhauling its factories and building new ones.
Much has been made of the events of January 6, 2021, and with the latest broadcast of CCTV video from inside the Capitol Hill complex, more questions have been raised. (snip) Long time CTH reader “Regitiger” has spent a great deal of time reviewing the entire process, looking at the granular timeline and then overlaying the bigger picture of the constitutional and parliamentary process itself. What follows below is a brilliant analysis of the federal government motive to create a J6 crisis that permitted House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to trigger an emergency session and avoid the 2020 election certification challenges.
Biden will announce sweeping protections
preventing new Arctic drilling ahead of
Willow decision replies
preventing new Arctic drilling ahead of
Willow decision replies
President Joe Biden on Monday is expected to announce sweeping new protections for federal lands and waters in Alaska, according to an administration official, as the administration is poised to soon approve a major oil drilling project in the state.
Biden will declare the entire US Arctic Ocean off limits to future oil and gas leasing and will announce new rules to protect over 13 million acres in the federal National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska from drilling. In all, the administration will move to protect up to 16 million acres from future fossil fuel leasing.
The announcement comes as the administration is preparing to green-light the ConocoPhillips' Willow project,
The Federal Reserve on Sunday night announced that all those with money in collapsed Silicon Valley Bank will get their money back, as a second bank was revealed to have closed.(Snip)The Federal Deposit Insurance Cooperation (FDIC) on Sunday held an auction of Silicon Valley Bank's assets, hoping to secure the bank before the market opened on Monday. CNN reported that no buyer was found, and so it was unclear where the money would come from.(Snip)Sunday's sale, which concluded at 5pm ET, was intended to protect all those whose deposits exceed the $250,000 insured by the government, and prevent panic.
Greta Thunberg’s 2018 Prediction That
World Would End In Five Years Doesn’t
Turn Out So Well replies
World Would End In Five Years Doesn’t
Turn Out So Well replies
Being the international spokesperson for a fake crisis can be tough, as the child actor who acts as the mouthpiece for the climate change industry has just been reminded. On Saturday, Human Events senior editor Jack Posobiec tweeted at pint-sized climate scold Greta Thunberg, “Hi @GretaThunberg! Why did you delete this?” The deleted tweet in question had Greta quoting this: “A climate scientist is warning that climate change will wipe out all of humanity unless we stop using fossil fuels over the next five years.” The date on Greta’s tweet? June 21, 2018. [Tweet] Greta was even more hysterical than her fellow climate mythicist, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-Mars),
A pair of climate activists in Scotland will face trial after allegedly vandalizing a display case holding national hero William Wallace’s broadsword. "The police say the accused believe they were raising awareness of climate change and that their actions were necessary for the cause," prosecutor Eilidh Smith said. Alexander Cloudley, 29 and Katrielle Chan, 21, both from Glasgow, pleaded not guilty to vandalism in Stirling Sheriff Court last week. They allegedly damaged and spray-painted the case holding Wallace of "Braveheart" fame’s sword. They each face a single charge alleging that, on March 2, they entered the National Wallace Monument and
Former President Donald Trump is blaming the failure of the Silicon Valley Bank on his successor's 'anti-American policies.'
A spokesperson for the former president, who is once again running for the highest office, told FOX News Digital on Sunday that he sees the regional bank's collapse as representative of President Joe Biden's stumbling economy.
The bank, the 16th largest in the US, fell on Friday after a 60 percent drop in shares, which sparked a run on the bank as panicked customers rushed to withdraw cash.It was the worst US financial institution failure since 2008, with SVB controlling $209 billion in total assets at the end of 2022.
Nancy Mace will not be joining some of her GOP colleagues planning to make a prison visit to those serving jail time for their role in the January 6 Capitol attack.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer confirmed Thursday that his office is working with Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene to organize a trip to speak with those persecuted for rioting at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Comer, Greene and Louisiana Rep. Clay Higgins wrote a letter to Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser requested information and documentation on 'January 6 detainees', as well as demanding steps toward allowing a congressional delegation to visit the jail and speak with inmates and employees.
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who was President of the Senate that presided over the Electoral College on January 6, unloaded on former President Donald Trump at the Gridiron Dinner on Saturday.
Pence slammed his former boss Trump in his strongest criticism to date of his former running mate. “History will hold Donald Trump accountable for Jan. 6,” Pence said. “Make no mistake about it: What happened that day was a disgrace, and it mocks decency to portray it in any other way. President Trump was wrong. His reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day.”
Banking regulators devised a plan Sunday to backstop depositors with money at Silicon Valley Bank, a critical step in stemming a feared panic over the collapsed tech-focused institution.
Regulators said depositors at both SVB and Signature Bank in New York, which also has been closed, will have full access to their deposits. The Treasury Department said it approved of plans that would unwind both institutions "in a manner that fully protects all depositors." Those with money at the bank will have full access starting Monday.
The Federal Reserve also said it is creating a new Bank Term Funding Program aimed at safeguarding institutions impacted by the market instability of the SVB failure.
This week House Speaker Kevin McCarthy released over 40,000 hours of unseen-by-the-public video from inside the Capitol, all of it taken on January 6, 2021.
McCarthy gave it to Fox’s Tucker Carlson, who promptly had his team going through all of it. Then he ran chunks of it on multiple nights of his show at the beginning of the week.
The so-called “news media” and their Democrat allies went ballistic.
Here are a sampling of media headlines:NBC: Tucker Carlson, with video provided by Speaker McCarthy, falsely depicts Jan. 6 riot as a peaceful gathering.
The Washington Post: Capitol Police chief blasts Tucker Carlson over ‘misleading’ Jan. 6 footage.
HuffPost:
U.S. regulators said Sunday it shut down New York-based Signature Bank, a second financial institution they shuttered after Silicon Valley Bank's collapse.
"We are also announcing a similar systemic risk exception for Signature Bank, New York, New York, which was closed today by its state chartering authority," Treasury, Federal Reserve, and FDIC said in a joint statement Sunday evening. The banking regulators said depositors at Signature Bank will have full access to their deposits.
"All depositors of this institution will be made whole. As with the resolution of Silicon Valley Bank, no losses will be borne by the taxpayer," the regulators said.
Signature is one of the main banks to the cryptocurrency industry.
Women and “non-binary” people with breasts will be able to go topless at Berlin swimming pools after a ruling from the German capital’s diversity ombudsman.
The move follows an appeal to the Senate Department for Justice, Diversity, and Anti-Discrimination in Berlin by a woman who was not allowed to go topless at a pool in the city at the end of 2022, according to a CNN report emphasising the alleged “health benefits of communal open-air nudity”.Officials decided that, as men are allowed to go topless, the woman had been discriminated against, ruling that henceforth women and the “non-binary” will also be allowed to swim with their chests uncovered.
Perhaps the single biggest factor contributing to America’s rising crime rate can be traced back to 1962. That was when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a voluntary, non-denominational prayer recited by school kids in New York State classrooms violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. For the record, the prayer that ignited that controversy reads as follows: “Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers and our Country.”
These 22 words were so repellant to Steven Engel, a founding member of the New York Civil Liberties Union,
While “woke” has insidiously metastasized throughout American society, the rapidly spreading cancer perhaps portends most ominously for its continuing effect on America’s Armed Forces.The Twins of Woke, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley have worked tirelessly to transform the greatest fighting force on the planet from “a few good men” to even fewer self-identified genders with self-assigned pronouns.
If it wasn’t the U.S. military we were talking about, the failed social experiment would be somewhat humorous — instead of
Several billionaires issued warnings over the weekend after the Silicon Valley Bank suddenly collapsed late last week and forced the federal government to step in.
Billionaire investor Bill Ackman wrote Saturday that the federal government had about two days to fix the problem—by Monday morning. He noted that a number of depositors may not see their money because it wasn’t insured; the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) notes it insures $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank for each account.
First Republic Bank sought to reassure customers that their deposits were safe as regional lenders scramble to dampen contagion fears sparked by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.
SVB was shut down by California regulators Friday and taken over by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) after its share price collapsed following a failed $2.3 billion capital raise.
With $209 billion in assets and about $175 billion in deposits as of the end of last year, it was the biggest bank collapse since Washington Mutual in 2008, and the second-biggest failure on record.
A significant proportion of its deposits are uninsured, leaving customers liable to big losses
For the past 20-odd years, Silicon Valley Bank was a great banking partner for CADE Estate Winery, a Napa Valley-based company with four wineries, multiple vineyards, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom as one of its investors, founder John Conover told Insider.
The bank seemed to understand the unique demands and challenges of the industry, offering low-interest rate loans, "seasonal crop lines of credit" and "equipment loans and debt restructuring," according to SVB's website.
So when the bank collapsed this week after a run of $42 billion in withdrawals, tech start-up founders and VCs weren't the only cohorts shocked by SVB's demise.
"I think it surprised everybody,"
NEW YORK — Can Washington come to the rescue of the depositors of failed Silicon Valley Bank? Is it even politically possible?
That was one of the growing questions in Washington Sunday as policymakers tried to figure out whether the U.S. government — and its taxpayers — should bail out a failed bank that largely served Silicon Valley, with all its wealth and power.
Prominent Silicon Valley personalities and executives have been hitting the giant red “panic” button, saying that if Washington does not come to the rescue of Silicon Valley bank’s depositors, more bank runs are likely this week.
“Either deposits in the U.S. are safe or they’re not.
Censored by the Right
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Days after Jan. 6, 2021, Army Col. (Ret) Mike Ford, a highly decorated infantry officer and a former colleague of mine, was sitting in church with his wife. The pastor read a prayer that had been sent to congregations in the area by the District Bishop. Below is an abridged version of the prayer:
Compassionate God, we come before you with heavy hearts. We are grieved by the violence that has occurred in recent days in Washington, D.C. Forgive us for any ways in which our actions, attitudes and words have contributed to the divisions, polarization and distrust that abound in our country.
EXCLUSIVE: Dramatic New Video Shows Efforts
to Revive Lifeless Rosanne Boyland on
Jan. 6, 2021 replies
to Revive Lifeless Rosanne Boyland on
Jan. 6, 2021 replies
A dramatic new Metropolitan Police Department bodycam video shows how officers and medics from three police agencies worked for 15 minutes to try to revive a lifeless Rosanne Boyland after she was dragged feet-first through the Lower West Terrace tunnel on Jan. 6, 2021.
The urgent efforts to restart Boyland’s heart were a stark contrast to the previous 10 minutes outside the tunnel, where protesters begged police for medical help, but their pleas were ignored. Boyland, 34, of Kennesaw, Georgia, was the last of four people who died at the U.S. Capitol that day.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen appeared to hint on Sunday that the government might step in to fund uninsured deposits at Silicon Valley Bank, the tech-sector-focused bank that collapsed last week when panicked customers suddenly withdrew tens of billions of dollars.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which took the bank into receivership on Friday, insures deposits up to $250,000. On Friday, the FDIC said all insured deposits would be available on Monday morning.
Most Silicon Valley Bank deposits, however, are above the insured limit. The FDIC said on Friday that it had not determined the amount of uninsured deposits but said depositors with amounts in excess of $250,000 would get
This week, the go-to bank for US tech startups came rapidly unglued, leaving its high-powered customers and investors in limbo.
Silicon Valley Bank, facing a sudden bank run and capital crisis, collapsed Friday morning and was taken over by federal regulators.
It was the largest failure of a US bank since Washington Mutual in 2008.
(Snip)
Founded in 1983, SVB specialized in banking for tech startups. It provided financing for almost half of US venture-backed technology and health care companies.
While relatively unknown outside of Silicon Valley, SVB was among the top 20 American commercial banks, with $209 billion in total assets at the end of last year, according to the FDIC.
Federal regulators are conducting an auction for Silicon Valley Bank, with final bids due Sunday, according to a report from Bloomberg News.
The bank was closed by regulators on Friday after massive withdrawals a day earlier created a bank run. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation took control of the bank on Friday, and started an auction process on Saturday night, according to the report. It is still possible that no deal is reached, the report said.
The collapse of SVB, which was a key player in the technology start-up world, is the largest U.S. bank failure since Washington Mutual in 2008. That bank was then purchased by JPMorgan Chase
“At long last, have you left no sense of decency?” Those words were first asked by lawyer Joseph Welch in his confrontation with Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-Wis.) during the Senate’s infamous Army-McCarthy hearings. This week, nearly 70 years later, Welch’s words seem more relevant than ever after House Democrats savaged two journalists who attempted to explain a government effort to censor citizens.
It was only the latest of a series of hearings in which FBI agents and other whistleblowers, experts and journalists have been personally attacked for raising free-speech concerns. This week’s hearing showed definitively that we live in a post-decency era.
Maybe it's age, but I'm starting to warm up to the God of the Old Testament big-time.
That's the one you're not supposed to like. The one you're supposed to feel embarrassed by. Even outraged. (Snip)
My immediate response is: okay—maybe he was unpleasant at times. Who isn't? And besides, anyone who ever does anything big is "unpleasant" every once in a while. Goes with the territory. Nice guys finish last, remember? Sometimes you have to kick ass to get stuff done. Everyone knows that. And in this case, we're talking about the Being who created the heavens and earth, and everything therein. You want big? That's big.
CNBC's Jim Cramer eviscerated for touting
Silicon Valley Bank weeks before disastrous collapse replies
Silicon Valley Bank weeks before disastrous collapse replies
CNBC’s "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer is being shredded across social media after footage resurfaced of him urging viewers in February to invest in Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which collapsed on Friday.
SVB had been the 16th largest bank in the United States and was connected to a number of Silicon Valley industries and startups. The closure of the bank was announced by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), making it the worst U.S. financial institution failure in nearly 15 years.
Upon the news of SVB's collapse, a clip went viral of Cramer in February speaking positively about the bank in a list of "The Biggest Winners of 2023
It’s a strange time in the United States, where one political party is actively engaged in a series of actions to keep as many people as possible ignorant. Ignorant not of one particular event, study, or story, but of so many topics that reality itself” is what they’re ultimately attempting to obscure. It’s evil, honestly, and it begs the question "What are Democrats so afraid of?” The only answer is simple: an informed public.Communists in the old Soviet Union were terrified that their citizens would discover how well people in the free west were living. There were no bread lines,
George Washington University Law School professor Jonathan Turley on Saturday appeared on FOX News to react to the Twitter Files hearing in the House. Turley said the hearing was like a Soviet show trial because Democrats were outraged when Republicans allowed witnesses to respond to allegations made by the Democrats.
"You had Democrats who accused former members of Congress of being Putin lovers and conspiracy theorists," Turley said. "All they were doing was raising free-speech concerns but what really was shocking in the last hearing is the Democrats have now severed their connection to the free press and the values underlying the free press."
Friday’s biggest headline-grabbing news was the bust of Silicon Valley Bank following a run on its deposits.
The collapse was the second-largest bank failure in the nation’s history and fears of a domino effect rattled stock markets. Seen from the long run, however, that was probably not the most important event of the day.
The honor goes to the announcement that Saudi Arabia and Iran restored diplomatic relations.
Given their long proxy war in Yemen and fierce sectarian hatred, the sudden agreement (right) was stunning.
Even more so because China brokered it.
It’s a pretty safe bet at the next gathering of California House of Representatives members, should such an event transpire, Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) will not be picking up Adam Schiff or Eric Swalwell’s bar tab. This decidedly less than surprising notion comes courtesy of McCarthy’s speech on March 11th to the California Republican Party Spring 2023 Organizing Convention, during which he flat-out called Schiff and Swalwell liars. From the Sacramento Bee: He accused Schiff and Swalwell of lying “time and time again” during their tenure on the House Intelligence Committee,
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and new owner of Twitter, recently stated that he is “open to the idea” of purchasing Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which U.S. regulators shut down Friday due to a run on deposits.
Business Insider reports that in a recent reply to a tweet, Twitter owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk stated that he was “open to the idea” of purchasing Silicon Valley Bank after the financial institution was shut down by U.S. regulator due to a run on deposits by customers. While some social media users have supported the idea, Tesla investors expressed reservations.
A levee burst on the Pajaro River in Monterey County, California, on Friday, flooding the town of Pajaro and forcing evacuations as California endured another “atmospheric river” — with more rain and flooding to come.
The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for the San Francisco Bay Area “[f]rom Monday evening through late Tuesday night” as yet another such “river” is on the way, with little break in between the storms.(Photo) The flooding, as captured in images and drone footage by the San Francisco Chronicle, highlights the unique vulnerability of the Santa Cruz mountains to this year’s flooding,
The federal government will not bailout Silicon Valley Bank, despite fears of a market meltdown, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced Sunday.
The bank, the 16th largest in the US, collapsed on Friday after a 60 percent drop in shares, which sparked a run on the bank as panicked customers withdrew their cash.
It was the worst US financial institution failure since 2008, with SVB controlling $209 billion in total assets at the end of 2022. President Joe Biden, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, the Treasury Department and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) — which now controls the bank's assets — are now holding crisis talks as the try to
Elizabeth Warren has called twice to apologize. Over a month later, Kamala Harris hasn’t called back. In a local Boston radio interview in late January, Warren was enthusiastic about President Joe Biden running for reelection but, asked if Biden should keep Harris as his running mate, she said, “I really want to defer to what makes Biden comfortable on his team.” (Snip) But the Warren moment is infuriating many in Harris’s circle: To them, it’s the latest in a long string of snubs to a vice president whom they say has never gotten the respect or support she deserves.CORRECTION*
The American Red Cross has maps and guides for migrants to make the dangerous journeys to the U.S.-Mexico border, according to documents exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The map, which is part of a packet stamped with the International Committee of the Red Cross and American Red Cross logos, shows a list of resources, including hotels, clinics and shelters where migrants can get support in Mexico and Central America. The maps include clearly defined lines leading to cities along the U.S. border. The organization also has a guide to “self care” along the journey, which includes tips on how to survive the desert and disease,
The continued freakout of leftists over Elon Musk owning Twitter is a continuing source of entertainment. They’re so upset that liberals are no longer controlling the platform and that people are now permitted to challenge the prevailing narrative they are pushing. It’s just something to see.
One of the people who just can’t seem to deal with it is Keith Olbermann.
I wrote earlier about how Twitter owner Elon Musk had posted a video of Jan. 6 defendant Jacob Chansley urging people to be peaceful and go home outside the Capitol. This appears to have been after he was inside the building.
If you haven’t seen the story yet, down in Fort Lauderdale there’s an LGBT-focused area called Sebastian St. where a large modern LGBT flag has been painted on the street. Footage has been coming out of it being vandalized by a truck that decided to peel out while sitting on top of the flag, leaving it scuffed and blackened. [Tweet] On Wednesday, more footage emerged that showed some cyclists doing their best to scuff up the flag as well. According to WSVN-TV, the cleanup process has begun to repair the flag and police are now trying to track down the vandals. The station began interviewing people
It was all a joke, she says. After igniting a firestorm by calling for the murder of pro-lifers on The View Friday, Hanoi Jane Fonda issued a statement: “While women’s reproductive rights are a very serious issue and extremely important to me, my comment on The View was obviously made in jest. My body language and tone made it clear to those in the room – and to anyone watching – that I was using hyperbole to make a point.” Except that it obviously wasn’t clear to anyone present. Fonda was speaking seriously; her declaration only became a joke when it became clear to her that she had crossed
This Great Stage of Fools
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If you’ve ever wondered why the Left is so successful in fooling so many people for so long, you might consider branding expert Rob Frankel’s observation.
The average IQ score is 100, encompassing about 68% of the population. If you add in the population who isn't even that bright, all the way down to the bottom of the barrel, you'll find that an astonishing 84% of the population ranges from "average" to "breathing paperweight." That leaves about 16% of people who are "above average" or "really, really smart."
(Actually post “pandemic,” I believe U.S. I.Q. scores have gone down for the first time in decades.)
Of course, some really smart people
Stanford Law Student Shout-Down Reflects
Normalization Of Intimidation Of Conservative Judges replies
Normalization Of Intimidation Of Conservative Judges replies
Intimidation of conservative Supreme Court Justices, including protests at their homes, has normalized intimidation of conservative jurists. It’s no surprise that it has trickled down to elite law schools and an attack on Fifth Circuit Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan. A crowd of jeering Stanford Law School students shouted down, yelled profanities and sexual mockery...at Fifth Circuit Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan. Stanford Law School Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Tirien Steinbach then intervened, not to admonish the students, but to spend several minutes berating the Judge for having the audacity to appear at Stanford Law School, which was traumatic to the students given his conservative judicial decisions.
Like during the late 1970s and early ’80s, the country is currently experiencing an energy crisis. The similarities are striking, especially the fact that Democrats also controlled the executive branch then. But one part of it that’s different today is the way Joe Biden and his administration are acting in ways that can only make the problem worse.
The most recent example came about a week ago, when a stunning, internal Department of the Interior (DOI) memo leaked. The injury here was self-inflicted; someone in the department accidentally posted the memo on their website. As my colleague Nick Arama wrote:
Former Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Amanda Lefton acknowledged
I love a good conspiracy theory. (Snip) Michelle Obama hates politics, hates voters, and hates Washington D.C., and not necessarily in that order.
She emerged from her privileged Martha’s Vineyard cocoon recently to recount in a podcast (about herself, naturally) that she cried uncontrollably for a half an hour on Air Force One when she left Washington, D.C., after Donald Trump’s inauguration. “Just straight, uncontrollable sobbing” from “holding it together for eight years” under the enormous, horrible, crushing burden of being the First Lady of the United States. Her story was one of struggle where living in the White House with staff to cater to her every need,