Tom Faranda's Folly

five minute read - Very lovely article about Judy Anderson

It was written by our friend Theresa Bonopartis. I'm quoted in the article. 

 

"Judy Anderson: A Soft Calm Voice for the Pre-born" - Celebrate Life Magazine

 

 

 

Wednesday wordle

CNBC interview: "Navigating bias in AI: Google's Gemini controversies"

You may have heard about this - Gemini is Google's answer to Microsoft's Chatgpt - an artificial intelligence (AI) bot which anyone can use. HOWEVER it's WOKE on steroids - several examples mentioned in the short video. Here's another one - refusal to condemn pedophilia. Google has apologized - sort of.

In this interview Michael Fertik gets to the heart of the matter. Love his line about grifters.

Tuesday wordle

Took less than 3 minutes - the wordles with repeating letters usually are difficult so I got lucky.

Crushing wokeness - Good article on the CEO of one of the VERY hot stocks today

And hot (up 193% in one year) with good reason. Alex Karp - I probably disagree with many of his positions but he does call out the BS of other CEO's. And a really interesting educational background. Not sure if he still needs the bodyguard.

This article is about 11 years old - from before Palantir was even a public company. The interview below it is from a month ago.

How A 'Deviant' Philosopher Built Palantir, A CIA-Funded Data-Mining Juggernaut

Since rumors began to spread that a startup called Palantir helped to kill Osama bin Laden, Alex Karp hasn't had much time to himself.

On one sun-baked July morning in Silicon Valley Palantir's lean 45-year-old chief executive, with a top-heavy mop of frazzled hair, hikes the grassy hills around Stanford University's massive satellite antennae known as the Dish, a favorite meditative pastime. But his solitude is disturbed somewhat by "Mike," an ex-Marine--silent, 6 foot 1, 270 pounds of mostly pectoral muscle--who trails him everywhere he goes. Even on the suburban streets of Palo Alto, steps from Palantir's headquarters, the bodyguard lingers a few feet behind.

"It puts a massive cramp on your life," Karp complains, his expression hidden behind large black sunglasses. "There's nothing worse for reducing your ability to flirt with someone."

Karp's 24/7 security detail is meant to protect him from extremists who have sent him death threats and conspiracy theorists who have called Palantir to rant about the Illuminati.

And here's a brief interview with him, which I posted a bit over a month ago.

Palantir's CEO Alex Karp crushes wokeness - gutsy for a corporate CEO

 

Monday wordle

Jonathan Roumie (plays Jesus in "The Chosen") Discusses Lent

As the interviewer says "Fishing for men." Among other things he mentioned the Jesuit Walter Ciszek's book He Leadeth Me.

 

"Nvidia is now worth more than the GDP of every country except these 11"

Amazing. It went up about 16% last week on Thursday after their quarterly report. Now worth 1,97 trillion dollars.  $788  a share.  And they started out making high performance chips for video games. Turns out, the same type chip is needed for AI (Artificial Intelligence.)

The chip maker has greater value than the economies of countries including Russia, South Korea and Australia

Nvidia Corp.’s NVDA meteoric rise makes it not only the third-largest company in the U.S. in terms of market capitalization, but also bigger than most other countries’ economies, based on gross domestic product.

Sunday wordle

"Two Years of War in Ukraine Has Changed the Way Armies Think"

The short article makes five points. Here's an excerpt from point #5 - better get ready...

In a speech shortly after the invasion began, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz referred to the moment as a Zeitenwende: a profound turning point in history. The term came to symbolize the way the conflict shattered the optimism — some might say, the denial — in which Europe had previously been cosseted; for so long believing that a war of this magnitude could never happen on its soil.

Having been caught unprepared, they’re trying to move onto the front foot. Countries from Denmark to Germany are working to beef up their defenses, with varying levels of determination. They calculate that within a few years, Putin may be ready to attack a NATO country.

Saturday wordle

Pigs fly; Jeb Bush defends Trump in Court cases

An opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal - also defends Musk. In Trump's NY case, since there were no victims, the state gets the $350 million plus.

The U.S. is the business capital of the world in large part because of its robust constitutional system and impartial judiciary. But two unprecedented legal decisions, against Donald Trump in New York and Elon Musk in Delaware, call that into question. In both cases, judges have ordered massive punitive judgments on behalf of dubious or nonexistent “victims.”

Every American has a right to be critical of Mr. Trump’s politics—one of us ran against him in 2016—or Mr. Musk’s public persona. But equality before the law is precious, and these rulings represent a crisis not only for the soundness of our courts, but for the business environment that has allowed the U.S. to prosper. If these rulings stand, the damage could cascade through the economy, creating fear of arbitrary enforcement against entrepreneurs who seek public office or raise their voices as citizens in a way that politicians dislike. 

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In New York, Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Mr. Trump to pay more than $350 million in a civil fraud judgment for inflating the value of his real-estate holdings. That case was brought by Attorney General Letitia James, who ran for office in 2018 on a promise to target the man she called “an illegitimate president.”

The unusual New York law Ms. James used to investigate and sue Mr. Trump didn’t require her to prove that he had intended to defraud anyone, or even that anyone lost money. The Associated Press found that of the 12 cases brought under that law since its adoption in 1956 in which significant penalties were imposed, the case against Mr. Trump was the only instance without an alleged victim or financial loss. Bankers from Deutsche Bank, which lent money to Mr. Trump, testified that they were satisfied with having done so, given they were paid back on time and with interest. They also testified that they were uncertain whether the alleged exaggerations would have affected the terms of the loans to Mr. Trump—a key part of Ms. James’s case. Since there were no victims, the state will collect the damages.

*************************

... blue-state politicians may have the satisfaction of “sticking it” to Messrs. Trump and Musk, but the loss to those states will be significant. The damage to the legal fabric of the country will be even worse. A dispassionate justice system is at the heart of American exceptionalism, and the country will be poorer if we lose it.

Mr. Bush served as governor of Florida, 1999-2007. Mr. Lonsdale is a founder of Palantir and managing partner of 8VC.

Friday wordle

Nuns detail sexual abuse from a well-known European priest

Despicable. A famous European Jesuit. This has been widely covered in the Catholic press.

Two former nuns said Wednesday that a world-renowned artist priest made them take part in threesomes and watch porn so they would "grow spiritually".

Slovenian mosaic artist Marko Rupnik, 69, is accused of sexually and psychologically abusing at least 20 women for nearly 30 years at a religious community in Slovenia.

"He took me to pornographic theatres to help me 'grow spiritually'," Gloria Branciani, who was a member of the community until 1994, told journalists at a press conference in Rome.

"He said that I would not grow spiritually if I did not meet his sexual needs," she said, describing how he sexualised religious concepts.

"We had another nun have sex with us because he said it was like the Trinity," Branciani said, referring to the central Christian doctrine of three persons within one God.

Rupnik was briefly excommunicated in 2020 for absolving someone of having sexual relations with him, but was reinstated after he formally repented.

He was finally expelled from the Jesuit order -- of which Pope Francis is a member -- last June.

In October, Francis waived the statute of limitations on the offences, opening the way for potential disciplinary proceedings.

"We were young but our ideals were exploited by abuses of conscience, power, spirit, body and often sex," said former nun Mirjam Kovac, who left the community in 1996.

 

 

Thursday wordle

Financial Tips From your Favorite Politicians for Amassing Amazing Wealth

With so much economic uncertainty in today's world, any hints for financial security are helpful. If you're looking for advice on how to make decisions that will lead to being wealthy, why not go to the best source? Politicians!

The Babylon Bee has consulted with some of the most prominent political leaders to provide you with the following list of sure-fire money tips:

1. Barack Obama: Write a new memoir every year.
2. Ron Paul: Sell the Ron Paul Harvest Right Freeze Dryer — only $2,999.99!
3. Bernie Sanders: Charge exorbitant fees to give speeches on the evils of capitalism.
4. Joe Biden: Launder American taxpayer dollars through energy companies in Ukraine.
5. George Bush: Launder American taxpayer dollars through energy companies in Iraq.
6. John Kerry: Tell everyone the weather will kill them if they don't give you all their money.
7. Al Gore: Produce An Even Inconvenient-er Truth to finish out your epic trilogy.
8. Lindsey Graham: Step 1, buy stock in a company that makes bombs. Step 2, bomb some stuff.
9. Nancy Pelosi: Use your position in Congress as a platform to commit insider trading.
10. All other members of Congress: Buy the stocks Nancy Pelosi buys.

If there's anyone you should take financial advice from, it's high-ranking officials in the U.S. government.

Wednesday wordle

60 seconds -

Kamala Harris & the #1 issue in the 2024 Presidential Race

Both Biden and Harris have said protecting and expanding abortion is the #1 Democrat issue. Not the economy, not foreign policy, not the fentanyl crisis. Not the border ... on and on. Unlimited, paid for by the government, no parental notification.

"Kamala Harris Continues Her Abortion Celebration Tour"

Harris is planning to make a stop in Grand Rapids on February 22nd and it will be Harris’ fourth stop a month after her nationwide tour kicked off on January in Wisconsin. According to a press release her office distributed, Harris will condemn pro-life Americans as “extremists” for wanting to protect women and babies from abortion.

Tuesday wordle

Close.

Leanne Morgan: youtube short - "Can She Read?"

This lady is a stitch. Hit the Leanne link below the picture.

Leanne

https://youtube.com/shorts/GJUQdJN528M?si=EbVO3DVeY56tHpdK

"6 Rules for Drinking Bourbon Correctly"

America’s homegrown whiskey has become one of the most popular pours around. And with so many bottles flooding the market, the backbar has turned into a crowded landscape, one that could easily overwhelm the average drinker. So we found a spirit guide. Beau Williams, the owner of Kansas City’s Julep, lauded for having one of the country’s most outstanding bourbon selections, shares his rules for picking, sipping and mixing America’s favorite spirit.

Hit the link - it's a short article.

Hey, we do ice the way this guy recommends!

Farandaville standard. We will have to try some others.

Monday wordle

Guest cartoon comments on Trumpster

HA. As they say in Jamaica "True dat". From my friend DC's better half.

"How Russia has avoided bankrupting itself after 2 years of waging war in Ukraine"

What's the saying? Russia is a gas station with nuclear weapons? Interesting article.

Two years into the war in Ukraine, Russia's economy still appears resilient. While wartime activities have supported the economy, Russia also entered the war in a sound economic position. Russia still has enough money to sustain the war unless its oil revenues drop substantially.

Russia's wartime economy is booming.

That may sound counterintuitive, but headline GDP growth is not unusual in times of conflict.

While there are doubts over the accuracy and completeness of the rosy economic data Russia has released over the past two years, Moscow looks poised to continue funding its war for a third year — and wars are expensive.

"From a purely economic standpoint, Russia has considerable room to continue waging war," Hassan Malik, a global macro strategist and Russia expert at Boston-based investment management firm Loomis Sayles, told Business Insider.

After all, Russia has been sanction-proofing itself since 2014, when it was hit with a raft of trade restrictions after it illegally annexed Crimea from Ukraine. On top of that, it's still supported by revenues from its oil sales.

Here's how Russia has managed to keep its economy strong even after two years of waging war.

Hit the  link above for the five answers. And below is a further excerpt from the end of the article.

Despite the boom, Putin is trying to solve an economic "trilemma" a former Russian central bank official said recently.

"His challenges are threefold: he must fund his ongoing war against Ukraine, maintain his populace's living standards, and safeguard macroeconomic stability," Alexandra Prokopenko wrote about Putin in Foreign Policy in January.

"Achieving the first and second goals will require higher spending, which will fuel inflation and thus prevent the achievement of the third goal," she added.

Putin already had to personally apologize for the price of eggs in Russia, which soared 42% in the 12 months prior to November 2023, according to data from the country's statistics agency Rosstat.

 

Sunday wordle

Tom & Brigid - 46th anniversary of our meeting! YAY!!

Yup. February 17th, 1978. In Jamaica where we were both living and teaching. Brigid crashed a house party I was throwing and the rest is history. We had seen each other around town (Mandeville) a couple of times, including passing each other in the street and saying "Hi" - and my being at a party she and her roommate had a couple of months before my (very well attended!) party.

So yesterday we went for a walk on Croton Point later in the morning as the snow was ending. Pictures below - check out the red tailed hawk. And for dinner we had some gorgeous Mac and Cheese that Tim made. We also had a really interesting rum based cocktail that we discovered - more about that in another posting. And the house was empty - both away for a few days with friends. Very unusual for just the two of us to be "home alone."

On the walk in, as we take pictures of each other. Nice wintery background.

Nearing the Yew trees -which Brigid says are 150 years old (?) and she always takes their pictures.

And again -

The view south - not sure what Brigid was seeing - we didn't go any further to the very end of Teller's Point - too muddy.

so having turned around and on the way back a red tailed hawk flew above us. And then being tipped off by a woman walking her dog that there was a large owl we went looking. We could hear the owl hotting but no sighting. Then another bird call and we spotted a second red tailed hawk - got some pictures.

With my samsung phone - no zoom - can you see the bird?

Then zooming in, these two pictures.

And as it flew off, I was able to get this shot - the wings outstretched - through the nearby tree branches. Won't win any awards but I thought it was cool.

As we neared our car Brigid said "look back at our footsteps" - she decided this was romantic so I took the picture.

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday wordle

After missing twice in six days, I am hopefully starting another long streak.

Friday wordle - another miss! Rats...

8 Candidates to replace Biden; #1 wins easily

With the Department of Justice's Special Counsel report calling President Biden's mental competency into question, there is renewed speculation that Democrats may seek to replace Biden on the ballot in the upcoming presidential election. But who would they pick on such short notice?

It's all good...

The Babylon Bee has exclusively obtained the following list of potential replacement candidates:

1. Taylor Swift: Though many saw it coming, years of meticulous Deep State planning is finally coming to fruition.
2. President Xi: He's been running the country behind the scenes for years, so he might as well make it official.
3. Claudine Gay: Just imagine all of the amazing State of the Union speeches throughout history that we'd get to hear again.
4. Chris Pratt: He's already appearing in every other role. Why not president?
5. One of Biden's many body doubles: It would be a seamless transition.
6. Daniel Day-Lewis: The only man more qualified than Joe Biden to pretend to be a president.
7. Harry Truman: Just like Joe Biden, he has presidential experience and he passed away years ago.
8. A life-sized wax sculpture of Joe Biden: No one would know the difference.

Start preparing yourself to see one of the names listed above being sworn in next January.

Thursday wordle

John Podesta, new Climate Czar

"quintessential phony" on display.

Podesta loves jetting around in private planes. In fact, he averages 11,000 miles per year in private jet travel. He also owns nine luxury cars. In other words, his lifestyle is responsible for emitting so many pollutants into the air that he has to be in the top 1 percent of the nation’s polluters. And when he gets to his destination, he bashes polluters.

John Podesta is a quintessential phony. That is why he was chosen to be the Climate Czar by our “devout Catholic” president. The Czar of Duplicity is a perfect fit.

You may also remember Mr. Podesta as Hillary's 2016 Presidential Campaign Chairman.

Wednesday wordle

Valentine from Brigid ... Hehe

Oh so true.

 

"10 Signs You're A Dangerous Christian Nationalist"

With the 2024 election year in full swing, the danger posed by Christian nationalists continues to grow exponentially each day, threatening to destroy democracy itself.

Knowing whether or not you harbor dangerous, deep-seated Christian nationalist tendencies may just save the entire world.

The Babylon Bee has compiled the following list of common signs you may, in fact, be a Christian nationalist:

1. You're a Christian: The biggest red flag of all.
2. You have voted in an election: You think you're supposed to have a say in who leads the country, you maniac?
3. You're married: To a person of the OPPOSITE sex, so there's no telling what horrible things you might do.
4. You are currently in possession of an American flag: Only a truly hateful person displays such frightening imagery.
5. You agree with the idea of building a society on principles like "do not steal," "do not lie," and "do not murder": Haven't you ever heard of the separation of CHURCH and STATE?
6. You let someone wearing a MAGA hat walk by without punching them in the face: Disturbing evidence that you agree with Nazis.
7. You pay for merchandise at Target instead of just running out the door: It's probably because you think you're better than everyone else. A classic symptom of Christian Nationalism.
8. You won't let your 3rd-grader join the After School Satan Club: Refusing to let your child hang out with the Prince of Darkness is a clear sign you're a bigot.
9. You face Mar A Lago five times per day and pray to Donald Trump: All Christian Nationalists do this.
10. You own a Bible: Even more dangerously, it's a King James Version.

If you exhibit any of the signs listed above, you are officially a Christian nationalist and an existential threat to the United States. It's a good thing you're already on an FBI watch list.

Tuesday wordle

Promising young Congressman Mike Gallagher to retire

As this WSJ headline says -

The Cost of a Dysfunctional Congress. Rep. Michael Gallagher will retire, another sign of the decline of the House.

Rep. Michael Gallagher’s decision not to seek re-election this year is understandable from a personal point of view. But it’s also another dispiriting sign of the decline of Congress as a place where people of intelligence and principle believe they can solve national problems.

The 39-year-old Republican said Saturday that he wants to devote more time to his young family. He believes in term limits for Congress and says he never ran for office with a goal of making it a lifetime career. He was first elected to his northeastern Wisconsin seat in 2016.

Yet Mr. Gallagher will be missed as a rare Member these days who wants to do something other than promote his social-media brand. As a former Marine intelligence officer who served in Iraq under Centcom Commander David Petraeus, Mr. Gallagher has focused on America’s fading ability to deter its enemies.

**************************

This military expertise is especially important given the Republican Party’s drift in the Trump era toward isolationism. The House GOP is increasingly dominated by Members who don’t support a military buildup despite the growing cooperation of U.S. adversaries China, Russia and Iran. The Senate still has some traditional hawks, but Mr. Trump’s influence is eroding support for peace-through-strength and long-time alliances even in the upper Chamber.

It’s hard to believe Mr. Gallagher’s decision to retire wasn’t influenced by the continuing dysfunction of the current House. The select China committee may not last past the current Congress, and he’s too junior to become Chairman of Armed Services. His principled stand against the GOP impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas suggests his lack of patience with his party’s resort to stunts that accomplish nothing.

Congress is increasingly a body for unserious people in both parties. The Adam Schiffs and Marjorie Taylor Greenes play to the cable TV and Twitter (now X) crowds and feed the partisan poison that makes legislative compromise more difficult.

 

Monday wordle - back on track

Nikki Haley responds to Trump mocking her husband's military service - one minute long

Trump, what a blowhard jerk. He didn't directly mock her husband's service - but close enough. “Where’s her husband?” Trump said. “‘Oh, he’s away, he’s away.’ What happened to her husband? What happened to her husband? Where is he? He’s gone.”

Great response from Haley.

Sunday wordle - Yikes, a miss!

Using DRYER on the third line was stupid. Had I not been lazy about it I would have used a better word and probably gotten it. The answer is NEVER.

 

Pretty good! The Bud Light Super Bowl commercial

Went up on you tube yesterday.

"Man Ruled Too Senile To Stand Trial Still Fine To Run Country"

All true, even though it's from the BB.

Special Counsel Robert Hur will not recommend charges for Biden's mishandling of classified documents on the grounds that he's too old and senile to stand trial.

"I mean, seriously, have you seen that guy?" said Hur to reporters. "I tried to ask him questions and he attempted to put my notepad in his mouth. The dude is totally zonked out for sure. I mean, we all knew this, right?"

In spite of the report detailing Biden's late-stage dementia, the Special Counsel confirmed Biden is just fine to continue running the country. "Oh yeah, that's no problem," he said. "You heard the Press Secretary. He's so active and alert no one can keep up with him! Impressive!"

Saturday wordle

A heartbeat away... 21 seconds of Kamala

God spare us. From this same talk there are several other short pieces of brilliant profundity.

Friday wordle

"Documents Prosecutor Cites Biden" but no charges

This from the morning's Wall Street Journal. Has to do with the secret documents he had in his car garage as VP. Two long articles which I've excerpted below the links. What did we do to deserve Trump v. Biden?

"Report says he presented himself as an ‘elderly man with a poor memory’; Biden fires back: ‘My memory is fine’"

WASHINGTON—President Biden’s age and leadership abilities are under fresh scrutiny after a special counsel report on his handling of classified materials said he presented himself as an “elderly man with a poor memory,” and after he repeatedly confused the names of past and present European leaders at campaign events this week.

**********************

An investigation released Thursday by special counsel Robert Hur, a former U.S. attorney from Maryland during the Trump administration, said that no criminal charges were warranted against Biden but noted he was careless in holding on to classified documents from his time as vice president. The report portrayed the president as having “diminished faculties in advancing age,” and displaying a “faulty memory” in interviews with investigators.

In combative remarks at the White House Thursday night, Biden pushed back against the report’s characterization of his recollections.

“My memory is fine. Take a look at what I’ve done since I’ve become president,” Biden said. He appeared incensed when he noted the special counsel had asked about the death of his son, Beau Biden, saying, “it wasn’t any of their damn business.”

***************************

Democrats accused Hur of a politically motivated hit-job, drawing parallels to former FBI Director James Comey’s decision to recommend that Hillary Clinton not be prosecuted in 2016 over her use of a private email server while serving as secretary of state—but still accuse her of sloppily handling classified information.

**********************

Rep. Ro Khanna (D., Calif.) said Friday that in his interactions with Biden recently, the president has been “very sharp and open to discussing the complexities and morality of the situation in the Middle East.”

*****************

In his report, Hur wrote that he didn’t think prosecutors could pursue a criminal case against Biden over the classified material, in part because there were some innocent explanations for Biden keeping the material that jurors might find convincing. “Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” the report said.

Responding to a question Thursday night about that quote, Biden said, “I’m well-meaning, and I’m an elderly man, and I know what the hell I’m doing. I’ve been president and I put this country back on its feet.”

The report said Biden did “not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended (‘if it was 2013—when did I stop being Vice President?’) and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began (‘in 2009, am I still Vice President?’).”

“He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died,” the report stated, adding that the president’s “memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him.”

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

In a separate Journal article, one of the reasons for not charging him (quoting the report) One of the most politically damaging sentences in special counsel Robert Hur’s report refers to Biden’s age and mental faculties. “At trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” Hur wrote in explaining one reason he wasn’t recommending charges.

***********************

Biden appeared to be aware that he retained classified material even when he was out of office, the report indicates. 

In April 2017, months after Biden left the vice presidency, he met with his ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer, who recorded his struggle to read his own handwriting. “Do you have any idea what the hell I’m saying there,” Biden said, showing his handwriting to Zwonitzer.

Then Biden gave him a warning: “Some of this may be classified, so be careful,” he said to the writer, who didn’t have security clearance, according to the report. 

************************

First elected to the Senate at age 29, Biden has “long seen himself as a historic figure,” Hur wrote, and he collected papers and artifacts from his career. Biden then drew from those papers to write two memoirs, published in 2007 and 2017, to prove his mettle and burnish his place in history. As Hur put it, Biden used the materials “to document his legacy, and to cite as evidence that he was a man of presidential timber.”

 

2 minutes - A quick take on the Manhattan Cocktail

And gotta love the accent - an Irish girl who works in an Australian bar! And Cara has a highly rated book on "cocktails, bartending and booze."

Thursday wordle

Republican on why he voted against impeaching Mayorkas

In the Wall Street Journal. I agree 100%.  I was against impeaching Clinton, and Trump (twice). There were no "high crimes or misdemeanors".

"Ousting a cabinet secretary for ‘maladministration’ would have opened Pandora’s box. The real problem is Biden."

President Biden has created a disaster at our southern border. In his first 100 days in office, Mr. Biden halted border-wall construction, ended President Trump’s successful Remain in Mexico policy, and implemented a catch-and-release regime. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is faithfully implementing the president’s ruinous policies, which are contributing to immense human suffering, placing a massive financial burden on states and cities, and threatening our national security. His performance has been a disgrace.

But I disagree with my Republican colleagues who voted on Tuesday to impeach Mr. Mayorkas. Impeachment not only would fail to resolve Mr. Biden’s border crisis but would also set a dangerous new precedent that would be used against future Republican administrations.

The first article of impeachment lays out in grueling detail Mr. Mayorkas’s manifest incompetence. But incompetence doesn’t rise to the level of high crimes or misdemeanors.

**********************

The second article of impeachment accuses Mr. Mayorkas of failing to comply with multiple subpoenas and obstructing certain oversight efforts, actions that are shameful but not outside the norm for cabinet secretaries. House Democrats impeached Mr. Trump for the same actions. Unlike Democrats’ rushed process against Mr. Trump, we should take Mr. Mayorkas to court to produce any information he is withholding and hold him in criminal contempt of Congress if he further stonewalls legitimate oversight.

Plenty more if you hit the link - it may work even if you are not a WSJ subscriber.

Wednesday wordle

The Government as censors and book burners

From the Wall Street Journal - but how can this be? The media says only "right wing Christians" are book burners? Who to believe?

Biden vs. The First Amendment. House Judiciary releases emails showing White House pressure applied beyond social media.

In March the Supreme Court will hear arguments over a lawsuit brought by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana challenging the Biden administration’s trampling of First Amendment rights on social media. Now it appears that the abuses extended to another giant technology platform.

Victor Nava reports for the New York Post:

The Biden administration pressured

Amazon

to censor books related to COVID-19 vaccines in early 2021 citing concerns that the material contained “propaganda” and “misinformation,” internal company emails released by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) appear to show.

The documents were obtained by the House Judiciary Committee and the Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government via subpoena, Jordan said in a X thread Monday, which he dubbed, “THE AMAZON FILES.”

Mr. Nava adds:

... on March 9, 2021, Amazon met with White House officials, according to the emails, and the company’s “top talking points” going in was whether the Biden administration wanted books blacklisted by the website or suppressed in search results.

“Is the Admin asking us to remove books, or are they more concerned about search results/order (or both)?” reads a company email.

In another email discussing an upcoming negative media story on COVID-19 vaccine books being sold by Amazon, an official acknowledges that the company “is feeling pressure from the White House Taskforce on this issue as well.”

The pressure applied by the Biden administration apparently worked, as the company put “anti-vax books” under a “Do Not Promote” order the same day Amazon officials met with the White House.

How in the world could such White House pressure comply with the First Amendment?