Monday, October 31, 2022

Trick or Treat!



The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: HMS Eskimo awaiting your digital pleasure at The Other McCain.

Gypsy Speaks, Pelosi Narrative Crashes and Burns

The Pauli Pelosi story continues, as Biden Blames GOP For Attack By (Checks Notes...) Pro-Castro Nudist (Off The Press). At Da Wire, Biden Blames Republicans For Violent Attack On Nancy Pelosi’s Husband. KT at Haut Hair, Speaker Pelosi releases a statement on brutal attack on her husband as Biden blames Republicans and Hillary Clinton: "The Republican Party and its mouthpieces" must be held accountable for political violence. At Wa Ex, 'Heartbroken and traumatized:' Pelosi breaks silence on husband Paul's brutal assault. Breitbart reports Democrat Media Complex Politicizes Attack on Paul Pelosi: ‘Anger of the Right’. At NewsBusters, NPR-Affiliate Flunkies Make ‘Deranged’ Attempt to Tie Elise Stefanik to Paul Pelosi Attacker. NPR delenda est. At the Free Bacon, as penance, Dems, Media Demand GOP Call Off Campaign. To misquote Ace (I think) our free speech is violence, their violence is free speech. Althouse, "With his usual level of class, Donald Trump put out a message of sympathy to the family of Jerry Lee Lewis, 'the Killer' of rock ’n’ roll, who died Friday at age 87, but said nothing all day about the Pelosi family." "Maureen Dowd takes a ridiculously cheap shot at Donald Trump, in "The Pelosis and a Haunted America" (NYT)." JTN reports Trump says Paul Pelosi assault a 'terrible thing', "'This country is out of control and you look at -- and they're Democrat run cities almost exclusively,' Trump says, addressing the rising crime in major cities across the U.S." Do you want him to talk or not.

From Twitchy, Glenn Greenwald thread examines the ‘instantly formed media narrative’ about attack on Paul PelosiGlenn Greenwald@ggreenwald "It's very possible that the instantly formed media narrative -- Paul Pelosi's attacker was a MAGA fanatic who broke in to murder Nancy -- will be proven true. But right now there are so many glaring doubts and holes in that story that it just takes common sense to question this." At Town Hall, Kurt Schlichter claims Everyone Is Laughing at the Ridiculous Pelosi Big Lie. Beege Wellborn at Haut Hair, On Pelosi: We're not falling for the "Right Wing Terrorist in the Tailpipe" joke. "Dear Mid-Term 2022 voter – this is a public service announcement. The rush to blame the Right for words = violence in the aftermath of the awful attack on Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband Paul is looking even more cynical than it usually is when they whip out the blame card, so please hold your judgment for a day or so."

Oxane 'Gypsy' Taub
At Da Wire, FBI Visits Home Dubbed ‘Hippie Collective’ In Connection To Alleged Paul Pelosi Attacker. Twitchy, Michael Shellenberger’s gotten to the bottom of the Paul Pelosi story: Drug-induced psychosis. PM,  Paul Pelosi's alleged attacker described by his neighbor as 'left-leaning nudist drug abuser,' "She also confirmed to reporters that DePape's household exhibits "paranoid" and "psychotic" behavior." Victory Girls say Pelosi Attacker David DePape Is A Drug-Addled Leftist Progressive. Sarah Arnold at Town Hall, New Details Emerge on Pelosi’s Attacker. Sundance at CTH, Not a Surprise, Neighbor to Pelosi Attacker Describes a Different David DePape Than National Media. At Da Mail, Nudist ex-lover of Paul Pelosi attacker is female PEDOPHILE who harassed boy, 14, and who bought sex dolls 'for their sons to use' "Oxane 'Gypsy' Taub, the former lover of Paul Pelosi attacker David DePape, was convicted in 2021 for child abuse after stalking and harassing a 14-year-old boy." Bob Spencer at PJ Media, Gypsy Taub Speaks! Pelosi Attacker’s Former ‘Life Partner’ Definitively Torpedoes the Media Narrative. Althouse, DePape blogged about meditating, playing video games at the library, and buying "a fantasy miniature salamander" on Etsy. "He blogged about not buying "a fairy house on Etsy" because — as WaPo puts it in "Alleged assailant filled blog with delusional thoughts in days before Pelosi attack" — he "was frustrated that the doors were painted and so could not be used by a fairy," and The most delightfully layered accusation of fake news. "Great tweet by Elon Musk, deftly knocking Hillary Clinton's message askew." At Bearing Arm, Hammer attack at the Pelosi home illustrates importance of firearms.

NYPo inquires Are we living through ‘Weekend at Biden’s’? America needs to know, but the complicit media won’t ask. Atop Da Hill, Will he or won’t he? Pressure mounts on Biden for post-midterm decision. Whatever Dr. Jill wants. At WaEx, Paul Bedard's White House Report Card: Zogby says, ‘Week belonged to GOP’. Matt Margolis wants you to WATCH: Did Joe Biden Cop a Feel With His 18-Year-Old Granddaughter? Ambiguous. At SLAY, Hunter Biden Was Target of ‘Chinese Intelligence Mission,’ Ex-AG Warns. I would be shocked if he weren't. The Babylon Bee, After Using FBI To Suppress Son’s Crimes And Raid Political Rival’s Home, Biden Warns Democracy In Danger. It could also go in the Notthebee.

CBS/Yougov (at Haut Hair), GOP leads generic ballot by 16 points among independents. Jim Antle at WaEx, Blue wall falls: How Democrats' dreams of a House majority collapsed in a New York minute. From NR, Rick Scott Predicts GOP Will Win at Least 52 Senate Seats in Midterms. At Wa Ex, Trump card: Forecast predicts Donald Trump is set to be the big winner on election night. 'Bonchie' at Red States sees Jen Psaki Travels to Pennsylvania to Interview Voters, Doesn't Get the Answers She Wanted. Fox News@FoxNews, "Jen Psaki told by Pennsylvania mom that economy, jobs are biggest voting issues: ‘Not the answer you wanted’

Jazz Shaw at Haut Hair, Talk we must about Fetterman's burning yard sign. Very suspicious. As Jennifer Van Laar at Red State reports What Are the Odds? Burned Fetterman Sign Was on Farm of DNC Speaker

At Twitchy, Herschel Walker responds to Obama dismissing him as an unserious ‘celebrity’ candidate (OUCH!). “Two years ago [Obama] told us to vote for Joe Biden didn’t he?” Perfect! Yes, and how’d that work out?" The Tennessee Star has a Poll: Walker Now Has a 5-Point Lead over Warnock in Georgia U.S. Senate Race.

Causing liberal heads to explode, At PM,  Kari Lake endorses Doug Mastriano in PA governor's race and at the Conservative Brief, Kari Lake Invites Elon Musk to Relocate Twitter HQ To Arizona. More explosions as At ET, Tulsi Gabbard Endorses Republican Adam Laxalt for Senate, Calling His Opponent ‘Joe Biden’s Rubber Stamp’ and Breitbart reports Ron DeSantis to Stump for NY Gubernatorial Candidate Lee Zeldin Ahead of Election Day

Tiffany Smiley
Mike LaChance at LI, sees a New Poll that Finds Democrat Patty Murray Only One Point Ahead of Republican Tiffany Smiley in WA State Senate Race. Within the margin by which polls usually overstate Democratic leads.

At Da Blaze, Democrat candidate in Arkansas arrested for allegedly making 'terroristic' threats "On Friday, Diamond Arnold-Johnson, 32, who is currently running to be the state auditor of Arkansas, was arrested while she was conducting a Facebook Live stream. According to reports, she had an outstanding warrant for first-degree terroristic threatening, a Class D felony."

At JTN, Wisconsin appeals court outlaws practice of spoiling absentee ballots to vote again "Few voters end up "spoiling" ballots." But then, how can Democrats "fix" the vote? The NewNeo looks at Ballot harvesting in Florida

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: HMS Eskimo and FMJRA 2.0: Minuet awaiting your digital pleasure at The Other McCain.


Monday Morning Stimulus - Halloween Edition

US News, Federal Judge Rules in Favor of Bikini Baristas Over Dress, "A Washington city's dress code ordinance that says “bikini baristas” must cover their bodies at work has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court."

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: HMS Eskimo awaiting your digital pleasure at The Other McCain.


Sunday, October 30, 2022

Oregon, My Oregon

Protesters gather around a fire they started
 in the early-morning hours of Saturday, Aug. 1,
 in front of the federal courthouse in downtown Portland.
Jazz Shaw at Haut Hair, DHS gathered intel on Oregon protesters. What happened to it?

If this was intended to be some sort of “October surprise,” it’s among the lamest we’ve seen in a while. The Associated Press is reporting on what is allegedly some sort of scoop coming from Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon. It consists of an “internal review” of Homeland Security documents showing that DHS officials gathered intelligence information about protesters (rioters, actually) in Oregon during the “summer of love” BLM riots in Portland. Wyden and his friends are apparently appalled that the FBI collected information to create what are called Operational Background Reports on the protesters who were burning down Portland, along with some of their known associates. Imagine that… the FBI actually collected information on people who were from a politically favored group. It’s hard to imagine in the current era.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials under then-President Donald Trump compiled intelligence dossiers on people who were arrested at Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, Oregon, according to a newly unredacted internal review.

The 76-page report is an internal review by DHS of actions carried out by its Office of Intelligence and Analysis in June and July 2020, when militarized federal agents were deployed to Portland against people protesting police abuses in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer.

When the dossiers were being compiled, some DHS analysts voiced concerns over the legality of collecting intelligence “on protestors arrested for trivial criminal infractions having little to no connection to domestic terrorism,” the DHS report said. Some of the employees even refused to participate.

Portland police walk past a dumpster fire during  a crowd
dispersal on August 14, 2020 in Portland, Oregon.
 

The fact that this report existed isn’t actually news. It was released last year, but there were redactions included in it. Since was the report was initially ordered under the Trump administration, Wyden seemed to feel it was important to leak the unredacted version to demonstrate how people engaged in the riots were “targeted” by the government under Trump.

The defense being offered for the rioters in the AP’s coverage of this story is simply stunning. It takes us right back to the now-famous days of the MSM’s coverage of the “mostly peaceful protesters” while they stood in front of businesses, police stations, and courthouses that were literally going up in flames.

They speak of intelligence being collected on people for “trivial criminal infractions having little to no connection to domestic terrorism.” They also incredibly cite a portion of the report dealing with who might have been organizing the riots, saying that “overwhelming intelligence regarding the motivations or affiliations of the violent protesters did not exist.”

Seriously? Were they not watching the nightly video footage coming out of Portland? Were they unable to see the Black Lives Matter banners and graffiti covering the ruined walls and streets? I really don’t believe that you need much imagination to determine the “affiliations” of the rioters.
A nude protester faces off against law
 enforcement officers during a protest against racial
 inequality in Portland, Ore., on July 18.
Compare that to Pastor Paul Vaughn, who was dragged out of his home at gunpoint in front of his wife and children by three carloads of FBI agents as the kids were getting ready for school. How many buildings did he burn down? How much of his city did he destroy? Actually, he was “wanted” for having led a group of parishioners in singing hymns at an abortion clinic.

Really, compiled dossiers on people trying to burn federal courthouses? How dare they? I do wonder how many FBI agents they had embedded in the BLM riots? If it was anything proportional to the Whitmer fednapping, it would have taken a significant commitment of manpower.

Pelosi Hammered, Red Tide Floods, Festerman Falters

Well, I took two mornings off, and I'm deluged (or is that deluded) with links. The big news, of course, is the late night hammer attack on Pauli Pelosi at his and Nancy's San Francisco house. by a semi-nude nudist activist, who's social media suggests a very tenuous grasp on reality, but contains enough material for both sides to claim he belongs to the other camp. Stacy McCain, Deranged Canadian Nudist Breaks Into Nancy Pelosi’s SF Mansion and Attacks Her Husband With Hammer. The left pounced on the opportunity to link this to Republicans and Jan. 6. as Stacy amply documents.  At WaPoo, Attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband follows years of GOP demonizing her, "A man with right-wing views who broke into the House speaker’s home yelled “Where is Nancy?” before assaulting Paul Pelosi with a hammer, police say." Also, Alleged assailant filled blog with delusional thoughts in days before Pelosi attack and Dan Balz opines, Assault of Paul Pelosi was attack on democracy. The risks keep growing. Ace, in red italics, Nancy Pelosi's Home Broken Into, Husband Attacked by Thug with a Hammer "LOCAL JOURNALIST: LEFTWING ANTIWAR ATTACKER; STORY IS ABOUT TO VANISH SO GET LAST COMMENTS IN QUICK". Althouse has three! posts, David DePape — the man who allegedly attacked Paul Pelosi — has been "blogging for at least 15 years, with his views growing more extreme over time," "Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, was hospitalized after he was assaulted by someone who broke into the couple’s residence in San Francisco early on Friday morning...." and "Neighbors described DePape as a homeless addict with a politics that was, until recently, left-wing, but of secondary importance to his psychotic and paranoid behavior." Michael Shellenberger, Pelosi Attack Suspect Was A Psychotic Homeless Addict Estranged From His Pedophile Lover & Their Children. Matt Vespa at Town Hall, The Pelosi Home Invasion Just Got Weirder. 'Bonchie' at Red State, Paul Pelosi's Attacker Gets a Lot Weirder, and the Picture Gets a Little Clearer. Raheem J. Kassam@RaheemKassam, "Yo what kind of home invasions include bathroom breaks??" At PM,  Paul Pelosi 'sounded somewhat confused', referred to attacker as 'friend' during 911 call, "During the home invasion, DePape apparently allowed Pelosi to use the bathroom, leading to the 911 call where he referred to DePape as a "friend". It is unclear whether Paul Pelosi was trying to say that DePape was his friend or Nancy's friend." Best advice is from Herr Professor Jacobsen at LI, Paul Pelosi Attack – Follow The Evidence, Not The Media Spin, "It might be that this ends up a simple case of a political attack. Or something else. The evidence will reveal the truth, the media will not (at least not before the midterms)." Paul Pelosi remains in the hospital, after surgery on his skull fracture, but is expected to make a full recovery.

In a less well publicized attack, Fox reports Rubio canvasser attack: 2nd suspect arrested, police say he confronted victim for being Republican. "A second suspect has been arrested in connection with the brutal attack on a Marco Rubio canvasser"

At Da Wire, Biden’s Aides Scream At Reporters As President Mocks Them While Refusing To Answer Their Questions. It's hard to muster any sympathy. At PJ Media, Matt Margolis notes the Transcript of Embarrassing Press Briefing Is Missing from White House Website. "On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre attempted to explain what she thinks Republicans will do to the economy and struggled to be coherent in the process. “And you know, it is, it is, um, it is, you know, it is not, uh, it is, uh, it is, you know, it is reckless. It is playing a reckless game with our economic… ec.. with our-our economy.” Beege Wellborn at Haut Hair, It's Biden's alternate reality and we're just the prisoners in it. Ace, AP: If Every Little Boy and Girl Could Just Know the Sweet Sexy Power of One of Joe Biden's Taken-from-Behind Thunderhugs, His Approval Rating Would be 69%. Stacy McCain riffs on the post in ‘Adrenochrome-Rich Young Girls’. Also, Is It #FreeStacy Time Yet?, which reminds me that Elon Musk took over Twitter and became head Twit while I wasn't paying attention too. Megan Fox at PJ Media points out It's Happening! Elon's Twitter Just Fact-Checked Joe Biden's Official Presidential Account. Insty SHRINKFLATION BEDEVILS AMERICA’S STATES, Biden loses three states. Miranda Devine at NYPo cites The 634-page report on Hunter Biden’s laptop — and 459 alleged crimes. Breitbart, Jon Stewart Admits Hunter Biden Being On Burisma Board ‘Is Corruption, Straight Up.’  WaPoo, Obama offers closing message as political tensions rise in U.S. but Larry Andress #justheretolaughpatriot@LarryAndress2 "I can’t quit watching this. Obamy can’t control crowd as they chant FJB FJB." From the Free Bacon, Twitter Addict Ron Klain Violated Hatch Act, Special Counsel Finds. Jazz Shaw at Haut Hair, Ron Klain violates the Hatch Act... again.

Dave Solway at PJ Media on Why It Has to Be Trump. Matt Vespa at Haut Hair VIP, Hillary Clinton Is Going to Run for President Again, Isn't She? Seems like it. 

Meanwhile the Great Red Wave shows no signs of subsiding. At Red Sate, Turning Tide? Decision Desk HQ Predicts Republicans Will Now Win Senate. Insty, DON SURBER: Dems listen to RCP, not 538. "538 still insists Democrats have an 18% chance of keeping both  the House and the Senate. Who is right? It does not matter because 538 has lost the ear of the Democrat Party. They know they are doomed. They haven’t had as big a Lost Cause since Republicans beat them in the Civil War."  At NYPo Roger Kimball, Why wishful-thinking midterm polls are Democratic fan fiction and Miranda Devine, How long will Democratic voters continue to allow themselves to be treated like fools?. Until Nov. 9, I hope. At Front Page, Kurt Schlichter says hopefully, Here Comes the Democrat Rout, "Are we almost to the point of Democrat collapse?" Dawn Slusher at Haut Hair, Limbaugh’s Right-Hand Man ‘Bo Snerdley’ Weighs in on Midterms: ‘This Has the Potential to be One of the Biggest Wave Elections in Recent Memory.’  At Da Wire, Schumer Warns Biden On Hot Mic That Democrats Are Vulnerable In Key State: ‘We’re In Danger’  “And we’re basically, we’re, I think we’re going to [inaudible],” Schumer continued. “The state where we are seeing, the state we are going downhill is Georgia. It’s hard to believe that they will go for Herschel Walker.” From the Free Bacon, Democrats Already Blaming Voters for Midterm Loss 'I cannot believe anybody would vote for these people' At Grabien cited at Haut Hair, MSNBC analyst: "I am really scared about a bloodbath ten days from now.” John Sexton at Haut Hair, USA Today poll: GOP getting 40% of the Hispanic vote and 21% of Black vote "Hat tip to Jeff B who called this poll a sign of a “Biblical-level event” on Twitter." AJ Rice at HE, How Long Until Hispanics Are 'White Adjacent?' From Fox, MSNBC panel stunned that 'kitchen table issues' are priority in midterms, "Molly Jong-Fast contended the 'most important issue' in the midterms was threats to democracy." Insty, THEY MUST BE EXPECTING A SERIOUS SHELLACKING: Another Democrat Talking Head Equates Voting for Economic Issues With the End of Democracy. News Busters, MSNBC Portrays Midterms As Democracy Versus Fascism. Althouse reads Lithwick so you don't have to, "But in recent weeks we’ve been treated to a boomlet of pieces suggesting that maybe women aren’t really all that angry about Dobbs after all." "In this telling, women just kind of burned hot for a few weeks, until they came to realize that they cared about gas prices and milk prices more than they cared about reproductive justice." Prager U Video: Why Do You Hate Conservatives?


Shawn Fleetwood at Da Fed thinks Fetterman’s Debate Disaster Shows Just How Far Media Will Go To Keep Democrats In Power. At Da Caller, Democratic, Independent Voters Say They Favor Oz Over Fetterman After Debate. Salena Zite at WaEx tells The painful story of how John Fetterman arrived at Tuesday night's humiliation. Mike LaChance at LI finds First Post-Debate Poll Puts Dr. Oz Three Points Ahead of John Fetterman in Pennsylvania. But Matt Boose at Am Great still worries Will Pity Send John Fetterman to the Senate? Ace, One Week Ago, the Leftwing Propaganda Press Claimed John Fetterman Wasn't Disabled, and Anyone Saying He Was Was a Liar Pushing Disinformation. Now They're Saying He Is Disabled, and That's Exactly Why You Must Vote For Him. Newsbusters, MSNBC's O'Donnell Compares John Fetterman to FDR & Winston Churchill. Bob Spencer at PJ Media, John Fetterman Is Just the Kind of Candidate the Democrats Want, brain-damaged. Breitbart, White House: Joe Biden Believes John Fetterman Is ‘Impressive’ and ‘Incredibly Bright’ also, brain-damaged. Don Surber is Calling out the Fetterman cult. KT at Haut Hair, Jill Biden and Gisele Fetterman should be held accountable. Eva Duffy at Da Fed reports, that contrary to Fester's claims John Fetterman’s ‘Trump-Voting Republican’ Parents Are Card-Carrying Democrats. At Twitchy, John Fetterman posts a photo of his campaign sign still burning in deep-red Lawrence County. Nick Freitas
@NickForVA
 Replying to @JohnFetterman "Really have to compliment how they were right there to catch the sign on fire. It’s almost like the photographer knew it was going to happen." The Dank Knight @capeandcowell Replying to @JohnFetterman "Oh hey, you hired Jussie Smollett to manage your campaign. Bold move."




At Da Wire, Mayra Flores, The First Mexican-Born Congresswoman, Responds After Rejection From Hispanic Caucus. “As the first Mexican-born American Congresswoman, I thought the Hispanic Caucus would be open in working together,” the Republican reacted to the Townhall report via Twitter. “This denial once again proves a bias toward conservative Latinas that don’t fit their narrative or ideology.”


CNBC, GOP Rep. Liz Cheney backs Rep. Elissa Slotkin in tight Michigan House race in her first endorsement of a Democrat. Tristan Justice at Da Fed hears McConnell Super PAC Bails On New Hampshire Senate Race After Polls Show A Dead Heat "Don Bolduc maintained his opposition to McConnell for GOP Senate leader just days before the Senate Leadership Fund pulled millions from the race." He'd rather reign in Hell than serve in Heaven. Scott McKay at Am Spec on Trump, DeSantis, and O’Dea: "What Is Going On? "Is this a game of 4-D chess, or is it all-out war?" Haut Hair cites the LA Times Voters fed up and afraid in LA

Ace, in red italic font, with a flaming skull, Florida *Democrat* Election Official Blows Whistle of Longstanding ILLEGAL Practice of "Ballot Harvesting" by Paying Mostly African-American Residents $10 Per Ballot "WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS "MISINFORMATION" ACCORDING TO THE TREASONOUS CRIMINAL GANGS CALLED THE DOJ AND FBI, DEFINED AS "TRUE FACTS WHICH CONTRADICT THE LIES OF THE REGIME." Just the News, by John Solomon and Natalia Mittelstadt. Breitbart, Exclusive – RNC Recruits More Than 70K Poll Watchers, Workers Ahead of Midterms. Jazz Shaw at Haut Hair sees Ballot drop box watchers in Arizona win latest round in court and Nevada ballot hand count on hold after court ruling for unclear reasons. Natalia Mittelstadt at JTN, Election integrity storm brewing in PA: Over 250k ballots sent to voters with unverified ID "The Pennsylvania Department of State has provided conflicting guidance regarding the handling of mail ballots that do not have verified identification, state legislators wrote in a letter."

Sundance at CTH, Whistleblower Releases Internal FBI Guidance Document Highlighting Disinformation as an Election Crime. Evita Duffy at Da Fed, Democrats Claiming To ‘Defend Democracy’ Are Adopting The Tactics Of Authoritarian China. At Am Think Richard McDonough tells us what he thinks about The Democrat-Media Complex’s 'Save our Democracy' Farce. Brian Lonergan at Am Great reminds us Noncitizen Voting Is a Real Threat to Democracy, "Unless candidates commit to oppose noncitizen voting, it’s just more meaningless double-talk."

Sunday Sunrise

Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: HMS Eskimo awaiting your digital pleasure at The Other McCain.


Saturday, October 29, 2022

Alaska Has a Crab Problem

WUWT, Population Crash Cancels Alaska Snow Crab Season – Media Falsely Blames Climate Change

The media is abuzz this week with stories related to the first-ever cancellation of Alaska’s Snow Crab season for 2022. Media outlets like Bloomberg are wrongly attributing the decline in snow crabs to climate change, citing nothing more than opinions offered by favored experts. This is false. The evidence indicates other factors have led to a steep decline in snow crab populations.

In a Bloomberg article, titled, “Alaska’s Snow Crab Collapse Is Likely Tied to Climate Change,” writer Zahra Hirji claims:

Alaskan officials recently canceled the Bering Sea snow crab season for the first time ever after scientists discovered an unprecedented decline in crab numbers. Climate change is the number one suspect in the dropoff. (emphasis mine).

“We’re still trying to figure it out, but certainly there’s very clear signs of the role of climate change in the collapse,” said Michael Litzow, shellfish assessment program manager at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which runs an annual survey of Bering Sea snow crab numbers. (Snow crabs are also found in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas off Alaska.)

In reality, the climate change link is nothing more than an opinion.

Another story, sourced from the Alaska Journal of Commerce, republished in the Anchorage Daily News (ADN) by Elizabeth Earl, also blames climate change for the crab decline: Scientists point to climate change as likely cause for Alaska snow crab decline. Saying: “There’s no complete consensus about why the stock crashed in the first place. Increasingly, however, the models seem to indicate that it’s due to temperature increases linked to climate change.”

No consensus, but let’s trust computer models over actual data. Where have we heard that before? As Climate Realism has repeatedly discussed, here and here, for example, climate models for air temperature are seriously flawed making projections that are far higher than recorded temperatures. There’s no reason to believe sea temperature models would be any better.

Multiple factors are contributing to snow crab decline. Long-term climate change is not prominent among them.

Fortunately, not every media outlet is as gullible as Bloomberg or ADN, appropriately attributing the snow crab decline to those other factors like predation, overfishing, and naturally warming waters.

The Guardian, for example, which is almost always blames climate change for anything bad that happens, noted in their story, Alaska cancels snow crab season over population decline (emphasis mine):

“Causes being researched but likely included increased predation and stresses from warmer water.”

No mention of “climate change” by the Guardian. We’ll return to the “warmer water” issue later in this article.

Back in 2017, when crab populations first started declining, The New York Times (NYT) had this to say in China’s Appetite Pushes Fisheries to the Brink.

Overfishing is depleting oceans across the globe, with 90 percent of the world’s fisheries fully exploited or facing collapse, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. From Russian king crab fishermen in the west Bering Sea to Mexican ships that poach red snapper off the coast of Florida, unsustainable fishing practices threaten the well-being of millions of people in the developing world who depend on the sea for income and food, experts say.

Surprisingly, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) echoed that point in the story, “Illegal Fishing Puts Crab Populations at Risk,” noting “A new WWF study has revealed populations of crab in the Russian Far East are at risk of collapse due to overharvest from illegal fishing.”

Laughably, Elizabeth Earl, the journalist who wrote the Anchorage Daily News story had previously written in February 2022, Bering Sea snow crab deemed ‘overfished’:

In October, the National Marine Fisheries Service determined that with its current low numbers, the stock of Bering Sea snow crab — also known as opilio crab — is officially overfished.

But now Earl is blaming climate change.

While so-called experts that have the ear of low-information journalists blame warmer water on climate change, that isn’t true. Rather, an extended La Nina event has increased temperatures in the seas inhabited by snow crabs.

As an October 2020 at Alaska News Source story, titled “Strongest La Niña underway in a decade,” reported:

La Niña is part of the natural climate pattern known as El Niño Southern Oscillation, a scientific term that describes the oscillating temperature changes between the ocean and atmosphere in the Equatorial Pacific. La Niña is known as the cold phase while El Niño is known as the warm phase.

 

The downside of this particular and ongoing La Niña ocean pattern is that it is affecting the Bering Sea, changing ocean currents so that warmer water is pushed northward.

These El Niño and La Niña events are natural patterns that have been going on for millions of years.

The United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has a page on the issue which factually reports El Niño and La Niña ocean patterns are entirely natural. The U.N. reports humans have no impact on them, stating:

Is El Niño caused by climate change?

No. El Niño events are not caused by climate change – they are a natural reoccurring phenomenon that have been occurring for thousands of years.

Can we prevent El Niño and La Niña from occurring?

No, El Niño and La Niña are naturally occurring climate patterns and humans have no direct ability to influence their onset, intensity or duration.

Crab population crashes have happened before, well before climate change became a cause du jour in the media. Note this graphic from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration showing Bering Sea crab populations back to 1980 (Figure 2, below).


According to the data in Figure 2, in 1985, the Bering Sea crab population crashed.

What happened then? The 1984–1985 La Niña event.

The evidence clearly demonstrates that the current large crash of the Bering Sea crab population is due to combination of overfishing and the largest La Niña event in a decade. One doesn’t have to be a scientist to understand this.
The first thing you need to do it immediately be skeptical about any narrative the media is pushing on you. Crab populations are well known to be highly variable from year to year, but it's important, that when bad years occur, that you don't exacerbate the problem by a blind insistence on maintaining former high catch levels. 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: HMS Eskimo awaiting your digital pleasure at The Other McCain.

Oregon, My Oregon

From the Free Bacon, Oregon Voters Say They’ve Lost Patience With Democrats 

After nearly four decades of Democratic control, voters in Oregon are ready for a change of leadership.

"I don’t like the Democratic approach to anything that’s happening," said Terri, who lives with her husband outside of Salem and dropped her party affiliation two years ago. "I used to be a Democrat for 40 years."

Like many voters who spoke with the Washington Free Beacon, Terri is fed up with President Joe Biden and Oregon governor Kate Brown (D.). She said both have attempted to woo progressives with policies that undermine public safety and contribute to record inflation.

"I want law and order. I want people who have committed crimes to be prosecuted," she said before gesturing to her liberal friend seated next to her. "We want help for those who need it—not help for everybody, like this administration is doing, just handing out money willy-nilly." Her friend agreed.

That dissatisfaction is threatening Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tina Kotek’s chances in Oregon, where voters rank crime and the economy as top concerns. Even after Biden visited the state to stump for Kotek, the Democrat trails her Republican opponent Christine Drazan in recent polls. Statewide surveys also show a majority of Oregonians have an unfavorable view of both Biden and Kotek.

"Kotek is Brown," Terri said, a remark similar to others the Free Beacon has heard while visiting the state. Kotek has sought to distance herself from the least popular governor in America. She criticized Brown in interviews this year but accepted Brown’s endorsement.

Residents’ talk often centers on Portland, where Kotek lives and which has long been a hotbed of far-left activism in Oregon. Anti-police protests inspired by the killing of George Floyd gripped the city for over 100 days in 2020, with rioters damaging businesses and clashing violently against federal and local law enforcement. Data for Progress, a left-wing think tank, found two years later that 62 percent of voters want to see more police in their communities.

"When I drive through Portland, I’m scared. I didn’t used to be scared, but I’m scared," Chris, who volunteers for a nonprofit that helps the homeless, told the Free Beacon. "The police are understaffed and underappreciated."

Sixty percent of Oregon voters want police to step up enforcement against quality-of-life offenses such as public urination and homeless encampments, the Data for Progress survey found.

I guess we'll find out soon enough. It might be easier to just vote Portland out of Oregon. 

Rule 5 Saturday - Amouranth Broke the Internet

Kaitlyn Michelle Siragusa (born December 2, 1993), better known as Amouranth   is an American social media personality, streamer, and OnlyFans creator. Siragusa is also known for her ASMR Twitch livestreams.

Siragusa was born in Houston, Texas, on 2 December 1993. She was an only child and developed a strong connection to animals. As a child, Siragusa enjoyed video games and anime, which later inspired her to start costume designing and cosplaying. After being taught sewing by her aunt, she received an award at her first cosplay convention in Houston, dressing as Princess Zelda from the video game franchise of the same name.
Look she has legs below
the knee and feet!
In 2010, Siragusa took Fashion Design & Theatrical Costume Design in college and was recommended by her professor to the Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet as a costume designer.In 2015, she started her own character company for children's entertainment.

In 2016, she was asked by streaming company Twitch to join as a content creator and livestream making costumes. She accepted and quickly gained a large following for her dancing, ASMR and hot tub streaming content. As of October 16, 2022, Siragusa has 5.89 million followers on Twitch.

Siragusa is one of the biggest content creators on adult website OnlyFans, earning over $1.5 million every month.  On October 8, 2021, Siragusa was banned from Twitch for the fifth time, as well as Instagram and TikTok. In November 2021, Siragusa announced on her Twitter that she had bought a gas station, which she is renting out to a Circle K.
Look, she does go outside!
I guess I was wrong when I told my kids that playing video games doesn't pay.

Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Gisele Bundchen and FMJRA 2.0: Keep On Rocking In The Free World up and clicking at The Other McCain.  Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama.

Friday, October 28, 2022

Back from Fishin'

I met Pete and Mike down at the boat at 6:30 AM, and we head out of Solomons. The wind was snotty, 20-30 kts out in the Bay, so Pete opted to try the Patuxent River. Our first stop was the bridge, where we plugged a shoal, and then jigged a couple of pilings. Mike managed a nice striper off one of the pilings, but other than that, it was just a nice boat ride.
Sunrise over Solomons
There was a small fleet of oystermen working the shallow water near by.
We covered a lot of water for very few fish, until, in the late morning, with the wind down a bit, we tried out near the mouth of the Patuxent, where, while we were trying to jig the three legged piling that marks the mouth, I spotted a large bunch of birds working over fish a little farther out. You can see them, a bit spread out, if you enlarge this photo.

Good quality fish were thick under the birds, you could get an instant hookup if you made it to the bottom, but by the time you fought and landed the fish, the birds and fish had moved further out. In an hour, we moved 2 miles following the schools of fish.
Mike with one out the the school.

As the birds spread out and stopped working we tried the rocks and shoreline at Cedar point, where Mike caught just a single. We then tried a secret rock pile Pete know along the Pax River Naval Air Station on the way back, where I caught the biggest fish of the day on a crank bait.


Gone Fishin'

 But not like this:


At least, I am if the wind slacks a little.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Gisele Bundchenup and clicking at The Other McCain.

Fish Pic Friday - Sea Gypsy Lizz

Captain Lizz @seagypsylizz 🧜🏽‍♀️ Fishing Blog 🐠 ⚓️ Join us on the water @riverrunfishingcharters 🎣 Captain, Mate & Commercial fisherman 🏝 Oak Island, NC 🔆

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Gisele Bundchen up and clicking at The Other McCain.

Thursday, October 27, 2022

Forget It Jake, It's Baltimore

Baltimore squeegee girl
 Jazz Shaw at Haut Hair, Plea deal withdrawn for accused murderer squeegee "worker"

Back in July, 48-year-old Timothy Reynolds was driving through downtown Baltimore when he was approached by an aggressive gang of “squeegee kids” who attempted to extort money from him for their services. Reynolds refused their services and they began attempting to vandalize his vehicle. Rather than simply driving away, Reynolds unwisely pulled his vehicle over and came back to confront the extortionists with a baseball bat. Moments later he had been shot dead. An unnamed 15-year-old was eventually arrested for the murder and is due in court on November 17th.

A recent development in the case has drawn additional scrutiny to this situation, however. It turns out that Baltimore prosecutors had offered a plea deal to the alleged shooter, but the boy and his attorneys rejected it. Then the prosecutors turned around and withdrew the offer for some reason, saying that it never should have been put on the table to begin with. The boy’s legal team (which he apparently has now) seems to believe that they can beat the rap or at least get their client’s case transferred to juvenile court where he would be unlikely to face any jail time. (WBAL TV)
A teenager accused in a fatal shooting rejected a plea deal that Baltimore prosecutors said should not have been offered to the defense.

The plea deal rejected by the 15-year-old squeegee worker called for a 60-year prison sentence in the death of Timothy Reynolds, who police said wielded a baseball bat before he was shot in downtown Baltimore on July 7.

“We rejected the plea deal because, quite frankly, it was ridiculous,” said J. Wyndal Gordon, an attorney on the teen’s defense team. “It was a ridiculous plea deal. It did not match the facts or the evidence that they’ve been able to produce in this case.”

The Baltimore "squeegee kids" are just a thinly disguised shakedown gang.

This case looked fairly open-and-shut at first, but now it seems to be breaking down into all sorts of confusion. The police eventually recovered quite a bit of evidence from the scene including the baseball bat and the gun, along with Timothy Reynolds’ body, of course. The shooting took place in broad daylight, but it’s unknown how many witnesses (if any) they have who might be willing to testify. That’s because this is Baltimore, after all, and snitches get stitches.

The defense is claiming that prosecutors are not cooperating with them during the discovery process. But they also seem to be certain that the police found no DNA from the boy on any of the evidence, nor did they lift any fingerprints from the gun. Of course, there was plenty of time for someone to clean that gun up before the police got hold of it, so that may not prove much of anything.

Then there’s the matter of the plea deal. Why even offer a deal in a case like this unless you have doubts as to whether or not you can secure a conviction? The defense sounds as if they think they have the upper hand here. The prosecutors wound up looking rather foolish retracting the offer after it was already extended, adding more chaos to the case.

The last issue to make the situation even murkier is the hearing on the 17th. The defense wants the case moved to juvenile court. If the judge agrees, it’s unlikely that the boy will do any serious time for this killing, assuming they have the right person in custody. But the prosecution originally managed to charge him as an adult, so we might assume that they knew they could make that stick. Under Maryland law, you can be charged as an adult at 14 years of age for murder or rape. But if you have a soft-on-crime, “reform-minded” DA or judge involved, that plan can fall apart as well. The bottom line is that what looked as if it should have been a solid murder charge that could have sent a serious message to the squeegee extortionists in Charm City may wind up crashing and burning on the rocks.

Just one of the things you need to consider when you have to visit Baltimore.