The Road to Serfdom—We’re Almost There

We are learning March 18 something that apparently slipped under the radar for a few days.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “quietly” made some changes to its data tracker website on March 15, removing tens of thousands of deaths from COVID-19, nearly a quarter of which were those for young people under 18.

They tell us this occurred because of a “coding logic error.”

I wonder how many they would have had to remove if they included those who were registered by hospitals—for profit or otherwise—as having died from the virus when they had multiple other of what we have learned to call co-morbidities. (If there’s one thing we can say for the pandemic, it built our vocabularies.)

In other words, they didn’t necessarily die of COVID-19, but the hospitals said they did, a different kind of coding error, I guess.

The number would likely be staggering.

This supposed “coding logic error”—whatever that may be; the CDC doesn’t precisely tell us—could indeed be symbolic of, or even actually encompass, the entire pandemic.

From this we can make the assumption, if we haven’t already, the pandemic was, and is, extraordinarily overblown, an event that figuratively and literally threw us back to the Middle Ages with people locked down, masked, force vaccinated, businesses shut, schools closed, and science turned inside out, leaving the entire globe in chaos.

And yet, to adopt the title of Neil Sheehan’s book about the Vietnam War, the whole thing was “A Bright Shining Lie.”

Of course, people died, but they do for myriad reasons under varying circumstances. That’s been the condition on planet Earth from time immemorial. More died in this instance because simple and immediate treatments were abjured in favor of far more expensive ones dangerous in themselves.

But that is only one of the reasons the pandemic became as pervasive as it did, taking over all our lives. How did it come to pass that what could have been an unpleasant, even severe, but containable health problem evolved into a civilization-destroying pandemic?

Even now, at this early stage, we must ask the age-old question, cui bono—who benefits? The answer lies in a statement with which we have recently become all too familiar:

“You will own nothing, and you will be happy.”

Happy that COVID is over? Oh, no. Not really. They didn’t mean that.

Many now recognize that sentence for what it is—the marching mantra of the “Great Reset.”

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‘rules for thee, but not for me..   and that goes for prosecution too’

TSA finds firearm in anti-gun California lawmaker’s luggage

Democrat California Assemblyman Jim Cooper, who authored anti “ghost-gun” legislation and receives an F rating from the NRA-ILA, apparently forgot on March 3rd that he had a loaded firearm in his purse. TSA found it during the X-ray screening of his messenger bag, which, according to Cooper’s own office, “looks like a purse.” If you think he got in trouble for this, you’d be sadly mistaken.

According to the NRA ILA:

[Cooper] was not charged during the incident. In fact, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office told the Sacramento Bee that law enforcement stored the discovered firearm for Cooper while he was on his trip and returned the gun to the lawmaker upon his arrival back in Sacramento.

Had you done this in California, you would have been jailed and/or fined. Well, probably.

The official story is that Cooper enjoys some exemption to the California ban on possessing a firearm in the “sterile” area of the airport due to the fact that he’s a retired law enforcement officer. However, bringing it onto a plane in his murse would have been a clear violation of Federal law and it certainly appears that, had TSA not caught his roscoe in his carry-on…well…Cooper had pretty clearly forgotten it was in there.

Additionally, Cooper wasn’t charged under Federal TSA laws for attempting — intentionally or not — to pass a loaded firearm through a security checkpoint, which carries a hefty civil fine up to $10,000 for a first-time offense.

Enjoying special person status and retaining your right to carry a gun in the airport, and attempting to pass a firearm through TSA screening and getting caught but not sanctioned (in fact, accommodated) are pretty far apart on the leniency scale. Looks like anti-gun politician Jim Cooper enjoyed both of these things though he’d undoubtedly lobby to have the book thrown at you.

BLUF:
There is, however, always a silver lining, even amid all the dark clouds that have gathered today. Given the ideology and outlook of most of our Representatives and Senators these days, maybe it’s for the best that they’re busying themselves with hair discrimination instead of turning their attention to real problems and doing even more lasting damage than they already have. We can be grateful for small favors.

With the World on Fire, You’ll Be Astonished At What the House of Representatives is Doing

American taxpayers pay members of the House of Representatives $174,000 a year, and for that we expect them to give us something in return, something beneficial to American interests and American citizens. There is plenty for House members to work on these days, what with the war in Ukraine, Biden’s handlers’ looming Iran deal that enriches Russia even more than skyrocketing gas prices in the U.S. already have, out-of-control inflation, and more. And you can rest assured that Congress is hard at work on the issues that are of vital importance to the well-being and future of the American people: on Friday, the House passed the Crown Act, a bill prohibiting discrimination based on hair.

It’s all about (you guessed it) racism. The bill is designed to ensure that, in the words of the Associated Press, “black people who wear hairstyles like Afros, cornrows or tightly coiled twists” do not have to endure “bias in society, school and the workplace.” Now, if a tony restaurant opts not to hire the fellow with his green hair fashioned into spikes as a maître d’, “such discrimination is a violation of federal civil rights law.”

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Activist claims buybacks are about caring, not safety

Gun buybacks are annoying. For one thing, no one is buying anything back. They’re buying guns so they can be destroyed. That’s it.

Then there are the problems with the “no questions asked” policies that make it likely that some criminals will use such events as an opportunity to dispose of weapons that could tie them to various crimes.

Oh, and lest I forget, we have ample evidence that buybacks simply don’t work.

But for one activist, that doesn’t matter.

A member of the Hampton Roads Black Caucus in Virginia said it didn’t matter if gun buybacks were ineffective because they needed to show the community that they “care enough” to have a gun buyback.…

A study from the National Bureau of Economic Research found that gun buyback programs are ineffective for many reasons. Among participants from mostly low-crime areas, gift cards that are being offered aren’t enough of an incentive, and the weapons that are brought “tend to be older and less well-functioning than the average firearm.”

WVEC asked Jones to respond to the findings of the study.

“Regardless of what the statistics say, we want to put some attention and show that we care enough and make time to do the program,” Jones said.

Well, that’s it.

That’s the stupidest BS I’m likely to read today. Well done, Mr. Jones. I’m impressed. That’s a level of stupid I didn’t expect to see so relatively early in the day.

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Shooting death of 26-year-old man in Birmingham ruled justifiable

The shooting death of a 26-year-old man earlier this week on Birmingham’s east side has been ruled justifiable.

Birmingham police on Friday announced no criminal charges will be filed in the Wednesday killing of Jonathan Earl Dancer.

East Precinct officers were dispatched at 11:40 a.m. to a report of a person shot at 6648 Division Avenue. When they arrived, they found Dancer suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Dancer was taken to UAB Hospital, where he was pronounced dead 12:26 p.m.

Police said the preliminary investigation suggests an altercation took place just before the shooting happened.
The shooter was detained for questioning and released. The Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office deemed the deadly shooting was self-defense.

Birmingham has had 30 homicides so far this year. Of those, three have now been ruled justifiable.

Black Firearm Owners: Gun Control Hurts Our Communities

Jessica Luckett got her first gun at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and it opened her eyes to the various laws and policies governing legal firearms ownership.
She works remotely for a nonprofit and lives alone in a West Pullman townhouse on the southern tip of Chicago. She often visits family and friends in Englewood, a high-crime neighborhood on the South Side where she grew up.

For Illinois residents to own a gun, they must get a firearm owner’s identification card, which is a months-long process.
Then, to carry the gun outside the home for self-defense, a concealed carry license is needed, which Luckett acquired.
Yet, through friends at a women’s gun club, she learned that other states observe very different gun laws. Most don’t ask for a firearm owner’s identification card and some don’t even ask for a concealed carry license.
“Why do we have an amendment that says right to bear arms, yet all states are so different?” she asked. “The amendment is for the entire United States, it is not for one state or another.”

She also questions the push for various gun control measures at the federal, state, and local levels, often by lawmakers from her party, the Democrats.
“It is taking away our Second Amendment right to bear arms, and I believe we should be able to protect ourselves,” she said.

Like Luckett, many first-time black gun owners are on a similar discovery journey, looking more closely at the narratives and policies affecting their newly embraced Second Amendment rights, according to Philip Smith, president of the National African American Gun Association.
During the pandemic-era gun sales boom, 21 million sales-related background checks were conducted in 2020, according to an estimate by Firearm Industry and Trade Association.
African Americans and first-time gun buyers were the groups that registered the biggest jumps.

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Der Grëtchënführër™ strikes again (as if this wasn’t expected)

Governor vetoes Theis bill protecting Second Amendment rights
Would have guaranteed issue of concealed pistol licenses during emergencies
LANSING, Mich. — Sen. Lana Theis’ legislation that would have ensured the issuance and renewal of concealed pistol licenses during declared emergencies was vetoed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Friday.

“This is a disappointing day for gun owners,” said Theis, R-Brighton. “The Second Amendment is clear that the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, but that is exactly what Gov. Gretchen Whitmer did today.

“People must be able to defend their life and property even, and especially, in times of emergency. State law is clear that county clerks shall issue concealed pistol licenses to those who are qualified, and my bill would have ensured that this essential service would continue regardless of any declared emergency.

“While I am disappointed with Whitmer’s veto, I cannot say that I am shocked. She has never supported gun owners and she likely never will. I hope responsible gun owners will continue their efforts to protect this right. I certainly will.”

Theis fielded numerous complaints throughout the COVID-19 pandemic that county clerks across the state refused or delayed issuing or renewing concealed pistol licenses, infringing on law-abiding citizens’ Second Amendment rights.

Senate Bill 11 would have required county clerks to continue to issue and renew concealed pistol licenses regardless of any shutdown issued by executive order or public health order. County clerks and law enforcement would have also been required to continue providing the fingerprinting services necessary to obtain a new concealed pistol license.

Additionally, the bill would have enabled the Michigan State Police to provide personal identification numbers to concealed pistol license holders, so they may renew their licenses online during any declared emergency.

It would be an easy conversion, you don’t have to ask how I know.

US Army Seeks a M240 6.8mm Conversion Kit

US Army Seeks a M240 6.8mm Conversion Kit

The US Army has released a sources sought notice for a 6.8mm conversion kit for the M240B and M240L machine guns. The kit will convert the weapons from 7.62x51mm to the 6.8mm round which wins the Next Generation Squad Weapon program. The move is essentially market research to find vendors who might be capable of providing kits that include all necessary parts to convert the 7.62x51mm M240s to the new round. This might include barrels, gas systems, action springs and bolt assembly parts.

The US Army’s Army Contracting Command, based at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey is conducting the  sources sought notice on behalf of the Project Manager Soldier Lethality (PMSL). The short description of the capability sought states that “the durability, reliability, and function of the M240 weapon platform cannot be significantly compromised with a change in ammunition.” There is no mention of the type of ammunition be it SIG Sauer’s hybrid metal cased round or True Velocity’s polymer cased round. The notice states, in capitals: “A TECHNICAL DATA PACKAGE (TDP) WILL NOT BE PROVIDED IN SUPPORT OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.”

US Army Contracting Command state that:

The conversion kit should include all hardware and instructions needed to modify a standard M240B and/or M240L to fire the 6.8mm ammunition. This will include a new barrel assembly and may include changes to the weapon powering through updates to the gas regulator, drive spring, or other means. The barrel assembly may be either of the standard barrel length (M240B) or short barrel (M240L). Information on 6.8mm ammunition type, specifications, and availability should be provided.

US Army Seeks a M240 6.8mm Conversion Kit

M240B in TV 6.8mm (True Velocity)

We do know that True Velocity have demonstrated a capability to convert legacy weapon systems to chamber their 6.8mm TV round. Back in June 2021, they announced that they had successfully converted M40s, M134 Miniguns and the M110 and Knights Armament LAMG to chamber the 6.8mm round.

The notice was launched on 15 March and runs through until the end of the month. Vendors submitting to the notice have been asked to provide information on their ability to scale up manufacturing and production of kits to higher quantities but the notice shouldn’t be considered a request for proposal.

US military aircraft crashes in Norway with 4 on board

A U.S. military plane carrying four people crashed in northern Norway on Friday. Officials said they found “no signs of life” after reaching the crash site hours later.

The U.S. Marines confirmed the crash in a statement on Twitter early Friday evening.

With all the smuggled fentanyl being confiscated, I’d think an OD with that would work just fine.

South Carolina is ready for death by firing squad after shortage of lethal injection drugs left 37 on death row waiting execution

  • South Carolina is set to use firing squads to carry out executions 
  • The state put a halt on the process when it could only provide deaths by the electric chair last year, which death row inmates rejected as their only choice
  • The Corrections Department has spent $53,600 to upgrade its capital punishment facility to accommodate death by firing squad 
  • Experts have said the method is humane and kills instantly, with the last such execution taking place in Utah in 2010 
  • Two death row inmates in Oklahoma had asked for death by firing squad over lethal injection, but their plea was rejected by a US District Court judge 
  • Inmates Brad Sigmon and Freddie Owens are expected to be the first to be given the choice between death by electrocution or firing squad in South Carolina

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Quote O’ The Day.

If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United States for an outright ban, picking up every one of them… ‘Mr. and Mrs. America, turn ’em all in,’ I would have done it.–Dianne Feinstein

Never let the lie “No one wants to take your guns” go unanswered

Edmonton ‘Mass Shooting’ Sees 60 or 70 Shots Fired, One Dead, Six Wounded

Mohamod Mohamod, 22 years old, and Said Ibrahim, 23 years old, were both later found, arrested and charged with first-degree murder, as well as multiple counts of discharging a firearm with the intent to endanger life.

The third suspect has been positively identified as Said Osman, 27 years old. Police are conducting a “Canada-wide” search for Osman, who is wanted for the same crimes as the other two suspects.

Two people have been charged and police are combing the country for a third suspect after dozens of rounds were fired outside a lounge in North Edmonton at around 2:45am on Saturday.

Seven people were wounded by the bullets at the time, and one of them, since identified as Imbert George, 28 years old, has since died in hospital of his multiple injuries. Two of of the other victims are still in serious condition, and continue to be treated in hospital.

The incident occured just outside of the Ertale Lounge in the vicinity of 124th Street and 118th Avenue, and local authorities suspect that gang-related activities and issues may have had something to do with the shooting.

Police Chief Dale McFee commented during an audio interview the following day that “There [were] approximately 60 or 70 shots fired at a crowd.”

“The video, obviously, is evidence so I can’t show it, but it’s horrific,” continued an obviously shaken McFee.

 

The DeSantis Doctrine.

You gotta hand it to a guy who convinces Democrats to die on the hill of defending perverted groomers talking about sex with little school kids. It’s on-brand for their fellow travelers at The Lincoln Project, but you would think that Democrats actually want to win elections. But no – they want to make the schools safe for pedos, and they don’t care who knows it. But they’ll care plenty in November when parents around the country come out and vote for The Party of Not Hitting on Der Kinder.

Donald Trump has his record of achievement – economic success and peace abroad. But Ron DeSantis has the DeSantis Doctrine, sort of like the Monroe Doctrine, except instead of keeping shady foreigners out of our hemisphere, the DeSantis Doctrine keeps woke fascists out of our lives.

It was DeSantis who started the fire that burned the pyre of Democrat hopes and dreams they jumped onto in their campaign against the Florida anti-grooming statute. But that’s only his latest fight with the elite. DeSantis has been laying down the law in Florida, literally, and in a way even Donald Trump never did. At some level, Donald Trump still has some residual respect for the trappings of the elite. He’s impressed by name universities and huge corporations, and for all his much-justified complaining, he still cavorts with institutions that hate him, like the NYT. He’s not yet completely done with the institutions, but DeSantis is. DeSantis is all honey badger, laying waste and making the rubble bounce.

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RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, MARCH 17:

March 17, 5:30pm ET

Russian forces did not make any major advances and Ukrainian forces carried out several local counterattacks on March 17.[1] Russian forces made little territorial progress and continued to deploy reserve elements—including from the 1st Guards Tank Army and 810th Naval Infantry Brigade—in small force packets that are unlikely to prove decisive. Russian forces continue to suffer heavy casualties around Kharkiv, and Russian attempts to bypass the city of Izyum are unlikely to succeed. Russian forces continued assaults on Mariupol on March 17 but did not conduct any other successful advances from Crimea.

Key Takeaways

  • Russian forces continue to make steady territorial gains around Mariupol and are increasingly targeting residential areas of the city.
  • Ukrainian forces northwest of Kyiv launched several local counterattacks and inflicted heavy damage on Russian forces.
  • Ukrainian forces repelled Russian operations around Kharkiv and reported killing a regimental commander.
  • Ukrainian intelligence reports that Russia may have expended nearly its entire store of precision cruise missiles in the first twenty days of its invasion.
  • Russian forces deployed unspecified reserve elements of the 1st Guards Tank Army and Baltic Fleet Naval Infantry to northeastern Ukraine on March 17.
  • Russia may be parceling out elements of the reserve force that could conduct an amphibious operation along the Black Sea coast to support ongoing assaults on Mariupol, further reducing the likelihood of a Russian amphibious assault on Odesa.
  • Ukrainian forces shot down 10 Russian aircraft—including five jets, three helicopters, and two UAVs—on March 16, and Ukrainian forces continue to successfully contest Russian air operations.

Russian forces face mounting difficulties replacing combat casualties and replacing expended munitions. The Ukrainian General Staff stated on March 17 that Russian forces will begin another wave of mobilization for the Donetsk People’s Republic’s (DNR) 1st Army Corps on March 20.[2] Ukrainian intelligence continued to report Russian forces face difficulties manning both combat and support units and increasing desertion rates.[3] The General Staff further reported that Russian forces are increasingly using indiscriminate weapons against residential areas because they used almost their entire supply of “Kalibr” and “Iskander” cruise missiles in the first 20 days of the invasion.[4] It is unclear if the Ukrainian General Staff means Russian forces have used almost all precision munitions earmarked for the operation in Ukraine or almost all missiles in Russia’s total arsenal—though likely the former.

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The Democrats Are Trying to Hide a Very Dirty Secret About Electric Cars

The Left views electric cars like the Rings of Power. It’s predictable but also pathetic. Driving electric cars saves the environment, says the left-wing drone. It emits next to nothing regarding carbon emissions, except that it does. Do liberals think we don’t know that this whole fad is a con game? Where do you think the energy that powers the batteries comes from? Fairies? Electric cars aren’t as efficient as gas-powered vehicles, but you pay more because…of feelings. Screw that. Green energy is a backdoor to communism from greenies who talk more about controlling the means of production than saving Mother Earth. Clean energy is a grift and political crony project aimed at giving fat cat donors tax breaks. Solyndra forever ruined this industry. I don’t care what anyone says, it’s all a long miserable exercise in subsidizing sub-par products.

Coal is what powers your electric car. Do liberals even know that? The very people who mock states like West Virginia don’t seem to know that these areas allow them to drive their precious, overpriced electric cars (via The Federalist):

To advance their climate agenda and deflect backlash about rising gas prices, Democrats are telling Americans that driving electric cars is for the greater good of the environment, fully knowing the charging stations for these cars are not fossil fuel free.

In reality, one of Tesla’s Supercharger stations was reported to get 13 percent of their energy from natural gas and 27 percent from coal. Power plants burn coal to generate electricity to power electric cars and emit a higher fossil fuel footprint than the left would care to admit.

While these vehicles may be falsely advertised, many who invest in these overpriced cars are able to avoid paying the currently outrageous gas prices. Still, Americans’ growing reliance on electric cars and the batteries they require will increase our dependence on countries such as China for materials.

“Chinese companies, particularly CATL, have secured vast supplies of the raw materials that go inside the batteries,” The New York Times reported in December. “That dominance has stirred fears in Washington that Detroit could someday be rendered obsolete, and that Beijing could control American driving in the 21st century the way that oil-producing nations sometimes could in the 20th.”

By increasing our use of electric cars, the United States will require more lithium batteries and will further rely on China to sustain our supply.

Well, isn’t that peachy. Liberals seem to have the yellow fever when it comes to China, or at least they’re a bit kinky when it comes to their wanting to be dominated by this country. Gas prices began to soar when Joe Biden took a hatchet to the Keystone Pipeline and our own oil and gas industry. That’s just a fact.

With the Ukraine war raging now, and sanctions being slapped on Russia for their invasion, the line the Biden White House is selling right now is ‘if you worried about $8/gallon for gas, you should buy a…$50k+ electric car.’ It’s almost too good to be true. You cannot make it up. The Democrats’ plan to ease gas price pain for a large swath of Americans is to force them to buy vehicles they can’t afford. A part of that is due to liberals being idiots. The other part is that it shows how the Democratic Party doesn’t know working people anymore. It’s all urban-based, rich, over-educated, and very white people making these snide remarks. The professional Left is the Democratic Party—and these people view those who drive pick-up trucks as neo-Nazis.

The dirty little secret is that a lot of fossil fuels are used to power the liberal delusions behind their electric car fetish. The Federalist did a great job sifting through the nonsense.