Tom Faranda's Folly

The Yankees look like the real deal

After coming back Friday from 9-1 down they beat the Orioles in ten innings 14-11 - video below. Then Saturday they beat them again 12-4 and now at 15-7 have the best record in baseball. 

A look at the first 100 days of Democrats out of power

Not a pretty sight. Article is off NR, partly excerpted below. Yes, Trump has his troubles, but ...

Disunity, obstruction, incoherence, obsession, obliviousness

What is the Democratic agenda? What does the party have to offer besides disunity, obstruction, incoherence, obsession, and obliviousness? They haven’t rallied behind a plan to fix Obamacare or an alternative to the president’s tax proposal. They seem dead set against enforcement of immigration laws, they seem opposed to any restrictions on abortion, they seem as eager as ever to regulate firearms and carbon dioxide. It’s hard to detect a consensus beyond that. Banks, trade, health care, taxes, free speech, foreign intervention — these issues are undecided, up for grabs.

 

For eight years President Obama supplied the Democratic message, provided the Democrats answers to public questions. Now Obama himself is under fire for agreeing to deliver a $400,000 speech to Cantor Fitzgerald. He is already a figure of the past: His hair gray, his legacy under siege, his time spent lounging on Richard Branson’s yacht or listening desultorily to Chicago undergrads. The energy is with Bernie, with the identity-politics movements, with the paramilitary “antifa” bands, and each one of these overlapping sects are outside the party establishment Obama represents.

That establishment is just as befuddled as its Republican counterpart at the current political scene. “I don’t know what’s happening in the country,” Hillary Clinton is said to have told a friend at some point during the recent campaign. This apprehension of distance between herself and the everyday lives of her co-nationals is one of the most perceptive observations Clinton has ever made. Her problem was she never figured out the answer, never came to realize that the various guesses she and Obama and other professional Democrats have wagered about “what’s happening in the country” — racism, sexism, nativism, gerrymandering, Citizens United, Fox News Channel and talk radio, Russia — are insufficient. What the Democratic party has yet to understand is that its social and cultural agenda is irrelevant or inimical to the material and spiritual well being of their former constituents.

CNN: "I respect the office but not the man" - two panelists go at it

Paul Begala, an ally of the Clinton's while Paris Dennard worked in the Bush White House.

Aaron Judge makes spectacular catch after no catch call is overturned

in Boston a few days ago. Pretty good and Judge is leading the Majors in home runs. 25 years old, and nice kid guy. Great for the Yankees.

 

The Pope in Egypt, meets with the head of the Coptic Church and references martyrdom

With special attention to the Coptic martyrs and martyrs of both churches - "The Ecumenism of Blood".

 

Columnist Bret Stephens jumps from Wall Street Journal to NY Times

If you care, here's an extensive interview with him. He is a conservative Trump hater.

It’s a decision that infuriated many of the paper’s liberal readers. Stephens may be a vocal critic of Donald Trump, but his views are firmly right-wing. In an interview on Sunday, his first since joining the Times, Stephens defended his view that fears of climate change are overblown, his argument that the campus rape epidemic is an “imaginary enemy,” and his belief that Black Lives Matter is sending the wrong message.

Here are part of his (sensible to me) views on the Boogeyman, climate change.

Jeff Stein

This seems to be similar to what you’ve said on climate change — that there’s a set of what you think are dubious statistics leading to “alarmist rhetoric.”

Bret Stephens

A guy I know just had a baby and he’s a big global warming, climate change activist. If he thinks in 20 years we’ll be heading toward unsustainable climates and there will be tens of millions of people being displaced, presumably including himself, at the most apocalyptic level, then presumably he wouldn’t be having children.

It contradicts the belief that we are heading ineluctably for an apocalyptic environmental future. Since 1880 — and I’d have to look it up — but according to the IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change], we’ve had about 1.7 degrees of rising temperatures.

The best scientific evidence suggests temperatures are rising, and the best scientific evidence suggests man-made anthropogenic carbon emissions have some substantial thing to do with that.

However, does that mean the trend will continue forever? We don’t know. Does this mean we will reach the upper bounds of what climate scientists fear? We aren’t sure. There are uncertainties in all of this.

If I say, “Hey, there are uncertainties about forecasting the future,” that ought to be — in any other context — a statement of common sense. But now if you say there are uncertainties, you are akin to what’s called “a denier.”

I think that term is incredibly ugly, because it almost explicitly connects doubts about the severity of climate change — not the reality of it — to doubts about the existence of the Holocaust.

Jeff Stein

If that’s your starting premise, does that mean you think there’s a great danger in overreacting to the danger it poses?

Bret Stephens

Well, yes. The best argument made on behalf of climate mitigation strategies is even if there’s a small chance your house catches fire, you take out insurance. That’s perfectly sensible. And you can make a perfectly sensible argument that even if we’re not 100 percent sure we’re facing a catastrophic climate future, we should take out a host of insurance policies to mitigate carbon emissions.

But then the intelligent question is: “How much are you paying for insurance?”

How to work out like a convict - 2 minute vid

Off The Business Insider channel. The workout is designed for small spaces ...

Upon beginning his seven-year prison sentence, Coss Marte learned that he had such severe health issues that he could die of a heart attack before his release date. Determined to get in shape but confined to his small cell, Marte developed a workout regimen that uses mainly a person's body weight, soon attracting attention and requests for group workouts from his fellow inmates.

Yankees take two from Boston in Boston

As Tanaka pitched a three hit shutout. The night before the Yanks won, 3-1. So they are now 13-7 without their catcher Sanchez or infielder Didi Gregorious.

Yankees win 3-0

Here's the Yankee catcher Austin Romine talking about the pitching job by Tanaka.

Tim gets 4th (javelin) and 2nd (shot put) in the outdoor conference championship

This past Saturday as his school STAC (St. Thomas Aquinas College) won the men's championship. 4th in the javelin was a little disappointing, but 2nd in the shot - that is great. Two short videos, including his best shot throw of the day which was a personal record for him (41 ft in non metric) and got the spectators - especially his parents! - very excited.

 

And here's the javelin - very slow run up with the wet ground.

 

How Trump tax plan will impact most people - a 2 minute video

This is the best brief analysis I've seen. Big advantage to people using the short tax form, as well as small business people. No doubt they'll be lots of give and take on this.

WSJ: A tax cut Elizabeth Warren should love...

But I wouldn't bet on it. And you can't tell from reading the NY TImes or Washington Post, but cutting the corporate tax rate raises the incomes of workers.

The Tax Cut Elizabeth Warren Should Love. Will progressives admit that business taxation is hurting workers?

Stocks have been rising early this week on the news that President Donald Trump still wants the big tax cut he promised as a candidate. Specifically, Mr. Trump has told h is advisers to draft a proposal to cut the federal corporate income tax rate all the way down to 15% from the current 35%. And now comes more good news that the President wants this low rate for all businesses, including small partnerships. Investors are understandably cheering, but a growing body of evidence shows that workers will be the biggest winners. A new study suggests significantly higher incomes for rank-and-file employee s as the corporate tax rate heads south. This column isn’t betting on progressive leftists like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) to acknowledge that taxing business is more destructive than it appears, but honest liberals in the crowd ought to consider what the industrialized world’s highest tax rate has been doing to U.S. wages.

It’s probably no coincidence that Mr. Trump is focusing once again on slashing the tax rate on corporate income soon after selecting Kevin Hassett, one of the world’s foremost experts on the topic, to chair his Council of Economic Advisers. Mr. Hassett has been a trailblazer in demonstrating how the burdens of such taxes fall on workers—rather than the investors the Warren crowd claims it wants to target.

The study was quite vast and here's another one from Canada, cited in the same WSJ article:

Other economists have taken up the issue and found similar results looking at various countries over different time periods. Now from the University of Calgary comes research by Kenneth McKenzie and Ergete Ferede showing the impact in Canadian dollars of increasing the corporate income tax ( CIT ) on businesses up north:

...we calculate that for every $1 in extra tax revenue generated by an increase in the provincial CIT rate, the associated long-run decrease in aggregate wages ranges from $1.52 for Alberta to $3.85 for Prince Edward Island. Applying our estimates to the recent 2 percentage point increase in the CIT rate in Alberta we calculate that labour earnings for an average two-earner household will decline by the equivalent of approximately $830 per year, which amounts to a $1.12 billion reduction in aggregate labour earnings for the province.

This means the corporate income tax is among the most regressive government levies when you consider the people who actually end up paying for it.

 

From New Zealand: "Chinchilla vs. Cat"

Full disclosure - of course we've had chinchillas for years - currently have three of them - Dusty and her son Spiderman and daughter Toby. But this is none of them in the video.

 

Good NYT article on Yankee catcher Austin Romine

Who has been playing well since he got his opportunity when Sanchez got hurt.

Having surprised even himself by making the Yankees last season, Romine has surprised others in the way he has played since Sanchez, a budding star, went out with a biceps injury two weeks ago. In his place, Romine has hit .324, with an .840 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, while also earning plaudits for managing the pitchers, who have a 3.13 earned run average when he is behind the plate. The Yankees have won eight of the 10 games Romine has started.

Reverse Mortgages explained in one minute video

From the CNBC channel. Pretty succinct explanation.

 

Washington Post current polling - Trump beats Clinton 43-40.

That's very amusing - evidently buried at the back of their story which leads saying Trump is "the least popular president in modern times".

Nearing 100 days, Trump’s approval at record lows but his base is holding

They do point out that President Bill Clinton wasn't in much better shape at the 100 day mark.

Here is paragraph 26 out of 27 - very buried.

The new survey finds 46 percent saying they voted for Clinton and 43 percent for Trump, similar to her two-point national vote margin. Asked how they would vote if the election were held today, 43 say they would support Trump and 40 percent say Clinton.

 

 

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday

As designated in 2000 after the canonization of Polish nun Faustina Kowalska.

The devotion was actively promoted by Pope John Paul II. On April 30, 2000, the Canonization of Faustina Kowalska took place and the Sunday after Easter was officially designated as the Sunday of the Divine Mercy

Pope John Paul II re-emphasized its message in the resurrection context of Easter:

Jesus said to St. Faustina one day: "Humanity will never find peace until it turns with trust to Divine Mercy". Divine Mercy! This is the Easter gift that the Church receives from the risen Christ and offers to humanity.^[17]

The devotion to Divine Mercy Sunday grew rapidly after its designation by Pope John Paul II and is now widely celebrated by Catholics.^[18] The Divine Mercy image is often carried in processions on Divine Mercy Sunday, and is placed in a location in the church so that it can be venerated by those who attended the Mass.

Fake News: NY Times buries release of U.S. aid worker in Egypt who was imprisoned for three years

Why'd they bury it? Because the release was due to a Trump initiative. Why should he get any credit for anything?

From the Althouse blog. The woman, Aya Hijazi, is married to an Egyptian.

This article, new today, appears in the print edition not on the front page, but on page 10. On the home page of the web edition, it's hard to find. I did a search for the woman's name and found nothing, then for "Egypt," and found the headline tucked away... do you see it?

Compare with the Washington Post article which you'll see if you hit the link.

Great! A Nurse takes over as U.S. Surgeon General

A rare non-fake news NY Times article.

America’s doctor was fired on Friday and replaced by a nurse. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy, an Obama administration holdover, was asked to resign by the Trump administration. He was replaced by his deputy, Rear Adm. Sylvia Trent-Adams, one of the first nurses to serve as surgeon general.

Trump news coverage 89% negative; virtually no coverage of important issues

Here's the graph:

Honeymoon from Hell: The Liberal Media vs. President Trump

As President Trump approaches the end of his first 100 days in office, he has received by far the most hostile press treatment of any incoming American president, with the broadcast networks punishing him with coverage that has been 89% negative. The networks largely ignored important national priorities such as jobs and the fight against ISIS, in favor of a news agenda that has been dominated by anti-Trump controversies and which closely matches what would be expected from an opposition party.

For example, President Trump’s push to invigorate the economy and bring back American jobs received a mere 18 minutes of coverage (less than one percent of all airtime devoted to the administration), while his moves to renegotiate various international trade deals resulted in less than 10 minutes of TV news airtime.

Eight years ago, in contrast, the broadcast networks rewarded new President Barack Obama with mainly positive spin, and spent hundreds of stories discussing the economic agenda of the incoming liberal administration.

Good interview on MSNBC: the authors of "Shattered" on Clinton campaign are interviewed.

I read the Wall Street Journal review of this book over the weekend. Because sources were "on background" the sources for information are not disclosed by the authors in their book.

Hammerhead shark action in Florida

Love this, since Brigid and I - long ago - while living in the Cayman Islands and diving with three other people at 95 feet near "Chisholm's Trail" met a rather large hammerhead.... this 1 minute video from over two years ago has almost 6 million views.

 

NY Yankees really are the Bronx Bombers!

Here are the season #'s as the Yanks are now 10-5 after a 9-1 win over the White Sox last night.

And here's Aaron Judge's 448 foot homer.

Tom and Brigid at the Stadium

Courtesy of Mike and Karen Riner for getting the tickets. We had a bird's eye view.

The Gang of four  - here's two

and two more

In the Yankee Museum before the game - who wore #42? Or #2?

Yogi got this right -

As I said, Bird's Eye seats

Meanwhile despite Luis Severino throwing a three hitter the Yanks lost 4-1, breaking their eight game winning streak. Here's Aaron Judge striking out. We realized he can't handle stuff on the outside corner ...

But a great time had by all (What's with the STAFF hat?)!

 

 

Star Wars "The Last Jedi" trailer for upcoming movie

I will give it a miss until it's on netflix or amazon.

Why British Prime Minister Theresa May called for a June 8th election.

Britain doesn't have to hold an election for another three years, but her Party (the Conservative Party) is way ahead in the polls, so why not strengthen their hold on parliament? That's got to be what they're thinking.

The Prime Minister stunned Westminster with a shock Downing Street announcement this morning as she looks to take advantage of opinion polls putting her 20 points clear of Labour.

And the leader of the Labor Party, Jeremy Corbyn, is very weak.

Here's her announcement - https://youtu.be/4xr9-CkZZRk

and Corbyn's response - https://youtu.be/pIt1kHkTJ8I

Off to see the Yankees tonight.

Hoping they'll extend their eight game winning streak going.  Courtesy Mike and Karen.

Photo credit, the great Joe.

Luis Severino is pitching.

Yanks seek ninth striaght

 

How $100 of our federal taxes are spent

From the Wall Street Journal. Picture worth a thousand words.

How $100 of Your Taxes Are Spent: 8 Cents on National Parks and $15 on Medicare. Half of all spending goes for Social Security benefits and health programs such as Medicare and Medicaid

From Russian television - incredible and deserved 28 second put down of NBC reporter

"Who was giving you your manners?" addressed to Andrea Mitchell from Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov 

Pope Benedict celebrates his 90th birthday in fine fashion -

With a beer.

 UPDATE: 2nd. video added below

Here's more

State with the least gender pay gap is ... New York!

A quick - 1:20 - video. But I'm not sure how they calculate the pay gap. Do they compare exact or similar jobs, or simply tote up what women get paid v. what men get without a valid comparison? It's not explained but still interesting.

 

How Islam views Jesus - one minute video

I found this pretty good. Off the Business Insider channel.

 

Easter, 2017 - Chinese painting and short sermon from 400AD

The Chinese Christian painter He Qi  - Go here  - Art Works of He Qi .::About Artist::.

I love this. No banner; instead a lily. And check out the women.

Here's the sermon:

The Easter Sermon of
St. John Chrysostom
Bishop of Constantinople (c. A.D. 400)

Is there anyone who is a devout lover of God? Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival! Is there anyone who is a grateful servant? Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord!

Are there any weary with fasting? Let them now receive their wages! If any have toiled from the first hour, let them receive their due reward; if any have come after the third hour, let him with gratitude join in the Feast! And he that arrived after the sixth hour, let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss. And if any delayed until the ninth hour, let him not hesitate; but let him come too. And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour, let him not be afraid by reason of his delay.

For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first. He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour, as well as to him that toiled from the first. To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows. He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor. The deed He honors and the intention He commends.

Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord! First and last alike receive your reward; rich and poor, rejoice together! Sober and slothful, celebrate the day!

You that have kept the fast, and you that have not, rejoice today for the Table is richly laden! Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one. Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith. Enjoy all the riches of His goodness!

Let no one grieve at his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed. Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Death of Our Saviour has set us free. He has destroyed it by enduring it. He destroyed Hades when He descended into it. He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh. Isaiah foretold this when he said, “You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below.”

Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with. It was in an uproar because it is mocked. It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed. It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated. It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive. Hell took a body, and discovered God. It took earth, and encountered Heaven. It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see.

O death, where is thy sting? O Hades, where is thy victory?

Christ is Risen, and you, O death, are annihilated! Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down! Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice! Christ is Risen, and life is liberated! Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead; for Christ having risen from the dead, is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen!

At the Good Friday Pax Christi Stations of the Cross through Manhattan

The 14 stations of the Cross a Catholic devotion (not completely biblical) that retraces Jesus' steps from his condemnation to his crucifixion and death. Pax Christi is the (or one of the) Catholic peace organizations. When Brigid and I started doing the Stations in the early 90's it would draw 800-900 people and get coverage from local news and television media. It was while doing them that we first met Dan Berrigan as well as Martin Sheen (a year or two before Sheen became President in The West Wing).

Unfortunately the event has really shrunk in recent years; there were only about 200 people and no media coverage which we saw.

I went with my friend Mary and arrived at the sixth station, which was sponsored and presented by Fordham Prep right outside of Grand Central (The Stations begin near the U.N. and go across 42nd. street). Since that's where Joe went to school I videoed part of it and will post it in a day or two.

Meanwhile here are a few pictures.

The Sixth Station  outside of Grand Central. The Stations are presented with a scripture reading, commentary on sponsor's theme (Fordham Prep, in this case homelessness - appropriate since NYC has a record # of homeless right now) and some music/hymns.

The Cross is carried by various people at the front. The great thing about this event - prayerful people in the middle of the city and seen by thousands of other NY'ers.

Across from Bryant Park - the theme was a very good one - clean water and it's shortage in many places in the world

From the other side of the street - Grace Building in the background. That unfortunately is the entire length of the participants.

As is sometimes the custom a 15th Station is added - the Resurrection. This was done by Cristo Rey NY High School. Nice job by the students.

Tom and Mary (Cross is growing out of her head - very Holy, Mary!) with the sun in their faces - definitely a Good Event to do on Good Friday. About 15 years ago a group of us from our Parish did one of the Stations - the theme was opposition to cloning and embryonic stem cell research. Maybe we'll do one next year on another topic.

 

Easter art: "Touch me not"

A day early. Chinese art and an ancient short sermon tomorrow.

Last Easter I received this image from a group called Daily Theology and liked it.

"Noli me Tangere" or "Touch me not" as Mary Magdelene recognizes Jesus as she is leaving the empty tomb.

The school of art is the Cretan School of Byzantine icon painting, which flourished in Crete in the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries. This icon is dated the mid-16th century.

"The "Cretan" version of the Mi mou aptou, or Noli me tangere icon- The influence of this school (the Cretan School of iconography) is evident in the bright colors chosen for the image and the long flowing hair of St Mary Magdalene."

Good Friday, 2017

Good Friday - the somberest day on the Christian calendar.

Today I'm going to the Pax Christi Stations of the Cross, across Manhattan. I like the Pax Christi Stations - ANY public display of prayer and penance through a big city is a good thing - and I've done it pretty much every year for almost 30 years. The exception being after I was getting over my chemotherapy way back when.

El Greco, Jesus Carrying the Cross. 1580.

 

 

Kimmel: Ben Carson stuck in an elevator

Amusing ...

One minute video - Leopard v. Porcupines - 220,000 views in one day

Amusing. The porcupines are unscathed - the leopard, not so much.

Fitness, age and body fat - great article

This is off the Starting Strength website by Mark Rippetoe the author of an excellent book I've mentioned before, Practical Programming. I've posted twice about Rippetoe and his thinking - here's one Short read: Building strength; high reps with low weight v. actually building strength .

Here's the article. 15 paragraphs long, written with some of Rippetoe's sardonic wit. Takes about five minutes to read.

Age and Body Fat

This is very important: stronger people live longer, no matter what the other variables might be. In studies of all-cause mortality, stronger people have a lower mortality rate at any age. Any profound loss of LBM (lean body mass) is highly correlated with mortality. Heavier people tend to be stronger. Heavier people carry more muscle mass, and more muscle mass correlates positively with strength, even if they are fatter.

 

The Secretary of State talks on Russia and Syria - two minute video

Off the Business Insider youtube channel.

Peggy Noonan wins Pulitzer Prize

UPDATE: YIKES! I corrected my misspelling of Pulitzer!

One of my favorite writers (and a great speechwriter for Reagan), although to be honest I haven't paid that much attention to her Wall Street Journal columns the last couple of years. Guess I should have. In the past I read a number of her books. The one that made her famous was her book on the Reagan years What I Saw at the Revolution, which she wrote in 1990 and is a great read. If you want to polish up on your own speaking, Noonan's book On Speaking Well, How to Give a Speech With Style, Substance and Clarity is excellent.

From the Journal article last night -

Congratulations to Journal columnist Peggy Noonan on winning the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for commentary. Ms. Noonan won for a variety of her columns during 2016, in particular for her prescient pieces on Donald Trump and the political uprising his candidacy represented. Ahead of most others, she foresaw Trump’s rise and his appeal to Americans who were frustrated by the leaders of both major political parties. Ms. Noonan didn’t shrink from addressing Trump’s many flaws as a candidate, but she always showed great respect for the intelligence of voters and explained the currents of American life and politics that catapulted Trump to the White House.

Ms. Noonan has written her weekly Declarations column since 2000, and she has long been a favorite of Journal readers.

She is the author of nine books on American politics, history and culture, from her most recent, “The Time of Our Lives,” to her first, “What I Saw at the Revolution.” She is one of ten historians and writers who contributed essays on the American presidency for the book, “Character Above All.”

 

WSJ on the Supreme Court: "Schumer’s historic blunder and Trump’s triumph."

From the Journal columnist James Freeman yesterday. And I'm so glad Schumer made this mistake. Was he under tremendous pressure to make the useless fight by Democratic donors and party loyalists?

"Gorsuch and More Such Schumer’s historic blunder and Trump’s triumph."

This morning Neil Gorsuch became the 113th Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, vindicating the decision of conservatives to vote for Donald Trump in 2016. This may signal the end of the Republican NeverTrump movement, which in its heyday attracted the support of literally dozens of think-tank scholars and columnists in a broad coalition that stretched from Washington, D.C. to as far away as Manhattan. Speaking of Manhattan, Trump’s Gorsuch triumph is also bound to inspire a new movement, this time within the Democratic Party. Expect more internal dissent as party members review the historic political blunder committed by New York’s Charles Schumer, current Senate Minority Leader and a man previously viewed as perhaps the shrewdest and most effective legislator in Washington.

By leading a filibuster against Mr. Gorsuch, Mr. Schumer inspired Republicans to follow the Democrats’ 2013 example on executive and lower judicial appointments and end the filibuster for all judicial appointments. This opens the door to a potential series of solid Trump appointees winning confirmation to the nation’s highest court. Now consider if Mr. Schumer had allowed the eminently qualified Mr. Gorsuch to receive a floor vote. Such a show of comity and fair-dealing would have made it next to impossible for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to persuade the most liberal members of his caucus to break the filibuster to confirm the next Trump appointee. Mr. Schumer failed to stop the Gorsuch confirmation and in the process he has destroyed his ability to stop any others.

NYT's Tom Friedman gets it (mostly) right about Syria

Wow. A new atmosphere as people like Friedman and Mrs. Clinton speak sensibly. Mrs. Clinton agrees with the air strike and is right about what to do going forward   Guess they recognize who's President. Funny line about the twitter feed.

Pro-police author Heather Macdonald's speech shut down by a mob.

As the late first Amendment supporter Nat Hentoff liked to say, "It's free speech for me, but not for thee."

An “angry mob” of protesters effective shut down a speech by a pro-law enforcement scholar at Claremont McKenna College on Friday, surrounding the building, screaming obscenities and banging on windows. Manhattan Institute fellow Heather Mac Donald, who is promoting a book called The War on Cops about the Black Lives Matter movement, was forced to give her speech on livestream – to a largely empty room — and then to flee the University building under the protection of campus security when things got really scary.

Student journalists covering the event told Campus Reform that they, too, were under attack, particularly one writer who tried to interview protesters about Mac Donald’s book. When it became clear they weren’t familiar with her work, the mob got violent.

“Protesters tried to prevent me from conducting interviews by pushing me, grabbing me, and blocking my camera. Several protesters followed me around for almost an hour and formed a wall around me,” the student said.

The school told Campus Reform that they were “disappointed” that Mac Donald’s speech was ultimately cut short. The university’s vice president for academic affairs, Peter Uvin also had some choice words for the protesters.

“What we face here is not an attempt to demonstrate, or to ask tough questions of our speaker, all of which are both protected and cherished on this campus, but rather to make it impossible for her to speak, for you to listen, and for all of us to debate. This we could not accept,”

Mrs. Clinton agrees with the air strike and is right about what to do going forward

I posted yesterday about what she said prior to the air strike Hillary Clinton agrees with bombing the Syrian airfield and she agreed post facto. Well good for Mrs. Clinton.

Marco Rubio's interview on MSNBC's "Morning Joe"

 

Yesterday morning. Rubio is Presidential material. He's still only 45 years old. Better him then Cruz by a long mile.

Bellevue Hospital: Review of a pretty amazing book about it's history

From the website Public Discourse. I'm on their weekday email list and this was Friday's. The reviewer "Aaron Rothstein, MD, is a neurology resident at the NYU School of Medicine. He spends half of his time training at Bellevue Hospital and blogs regularly about medicine for The New Atlantis."

Bellevue: The Best and the Worst of America

This is an unusual modus operandi in a healthcare system that has few resources for such altruistic causes. But Bellevue has operated in this way since its very inception, acting as the hospital of last resort for New York City and for America’s neediest and most troubled, as David Oshinsky reminds us in his fascinating new history of the institution, Bellevue: Three Centuries of Medicine and Mayhem at America’s Most Storied Hospital. Professor Oshinsky, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Polio: An American Story and professor of history at NYU, eloquently tells the hospital’s history from its humble beginnings to its subsequent accomplishments and horrors.

Oshinsky’s comprehensive book arrives at a time when the public hospital system’s difficulties are compounded by our healthcare system’s financial hardships and confusion, calling into question whether supporting such institutions is worth the investment. His history, however, is less a cheerleading polemic and more a fascinating tale, demonstrating that Bellevue’s past and present are equally unsettling, remarkable, and enduringly relevant.

Tucker Carlson - USA news coverage has never been faker

Who else but the NY Times, Washington Post, etc.

 

My Senator - Schumer - proves - once again - that he's a jerk

Twaddle. There's only been one filibuster in history against a Supreme Court nominee (Abe Fortas) and it was a bipartisan filibuster. Anyway Gorsuch confirmed with three Democrats voting for him.

 

98,000 jobs created in March? That's not good.

Nonfarm payrolls grew by just 98,000 in March though the unemployment rate fell to a 10-year low of 4.5 percent, according to a closely watched report Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Payrolls had been expected to increase by 180,000 in March, according to economists surveyed by Reuters.... A more encompassing measure of unemployment that includes discouraged workers those at work part-time for economic reasons fell three-tenths to 8.9 percent, the lowest level since December 2007.

So the real unemployment rate is 8.9%. Of course the numbers can be spun lots of ways.

153,000,000 Americans Employed in March, Setting 2nd Straight Record

Hillary Clinton agrees with bombing the Syrian airfield

The rest of what she says after that is, ugh, debatable.