MD Had Best Oyster Haul in Years

WTOP, Maryland oyster harvest sees biggest haul in decades

The most recent oyster harvest in Maryland was the biggest in decades.

Oyster season in Maryland runs from October through the end of March, and preliminary state figures show the 2021 to 2022 harvest in the Chesapeake Bay was the largest since the 1986 to 1987 season.

The Bay Journal reports that the total was about 511,000 bushels, up from 333,000 during the previous season. The final number is still being calculated.

Virginia’s harvest total isn’t out yet either, but Andrew Button with the Virginia Marine Resources Commission said annual surveys indicate the oyster population there has reached record high numbers.

 

Diseases like MSX and Dermo greatly impacted the wild harvest, with Maryland hitting a record low of 27,000 bushels in 2003 to 2004.

Record rainfall from 2018 to 2019 lowered the salt levels in the Bay and its tributaries, curbing oyster growth and reproduction, and even killing oysters in some places.

In response, Maryland and Virginia imposed harvest restrictions, reducing daily bushel limits. Virginia shortened its season by a month, while Maryland banned harvests on Wednesdays, reducing the workweek to four days.

Button said Virginia did not let up on any of the curbs on its wild fishery, which means that the state’s wild harvest has not grown as much as Maryland’s oyster harvest.

I arrived in Maryland to work at the Benedict Estuarine Research Lab in 1985, and almost immediately became involved in a survey of the local oyster populations. The bottom almost immediately dropped out of the populations, already at historically low numbers, due to a combination of Dermo, MSX and overfishing. I'm glad to hear they're back. But imagine how much faster they might have returned if they hadn't insisted of harvesting them all along.

Beach Report 4/30/22

A pretty nice day; low to mid 50s at the beach, high wispy clouds, and a slight NW breeze.

We caught the tide on the way up, and had pretty good lines of gravel and shell to look through.

We did end up with 39 teeth, and three crab claws, but the teeth were pretty ordinary. The standout today was this piece of sting ray barb, with a good serrations. 

Misdismal Information Overload

I&I, Biden Unites The Country! Nobody Wants Him As President Any More. Nobody really wanted him in the first place. At Haut Hair, AllahPundit whines Man with 41% approval rating ready to take it to Republicans on the campaign trail, if only he can find it. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Afternoon Edition) Sean Davis at Da Fed reports Republicans Jump To 10-Point Lead In Generic Ballot Test, New FDRLST/Susquehanna Poll Shows. Alas, we don't vote for generic politicians. Ryan King at WaEx says House GOP poised to gain three to four seats in volatile redistricting process. It's Gerrymandering when Republicans do it, "social justice" when Democrats do it. Dan Flynn at Am Spec wants you to Start Spreading the News: Many Democrats Are Leaving in November, "A failed gerrymander in New York is a sign the Left is losing its grip." But as John Sexton at Haut Hair reports Democrats haven't quite given up on using their gerrymandered, unconstitutional maps in New York. They're argument is that we have to ignore the NY constitution to follow the NY law regarding when the primaries happen. That's kind of backwards. Constitutions define the boundaries for laws. 

Via the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Evening Edition), The WEasel Zippers note a Report: Growing Number Of Black Republicans Are Driving “Erosion” In Biden’s Polling… "Dems amp up their race-baiting in 3… 2… 1…" Does their amp have an 11? At NYT, cited at Haut Hair, David Brooks has Seven lessons Democrats need to learn -- fast. Good thing nobody listens to David Brooks; he's an affirmative action hire. Dave Marcus at NYPo warns that Heading for an election wipeout, Joe Biden is doubling down on every failed policy. George Nuemayr at Am Spec has more on The Unhappy Political Marriage of Joe and Kamala. Bummer. Matt Vespa at Town Hall  features a Former Rolling Stone Editor: The Liberal Media's Campaign of Protecting Joe Biden Is Beyond Absurd. 

One of Democrats ongoing problems? Inflation. Capt. Ed at Haut Hair, BREAKING: Yet another inflation gauge hits a new 40-year high. Welcome back, Carter. CNN Business admits The Fed's favorite inflation measure hit a fresh 40-year high and CNBC sniffles The Fed’s favorite inflation gauge rose 5.2% in March as worker pay fell further behind. Wa Free Bee observes Corn Prices Climbing Clear Up to the Sky, Soybean prices also highest in years, signaling food price inflation. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Evening Edition), Don Surber: Household Income Dropped 10.9% and notes D.C. donuts are $57 a dozen. Why not? They're mostly paid for with tax payers money one way or another. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Afternoon Edition) Don Surber also sees how the Media Spins Recession. Gallup finds U.S. Personal Finance Ratings Slide Amid Rising Prices. At Breitbart, Biden’s Economy is the Definition of Stagflation. At Da Caller an EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Tim Scott Pressed The Treasury Department Over Inflation, Here’s Their ‘Unacceptable’ Response. Racist! Also, Today Is A Nightmare For Biden And The Democrats. And that was before yesterday's 1000 point DJ dip. Kate Scanlon at WaEx sees Congressional Democrats try to go on offensive as gas prices worsen. They're offensive, all right. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Evening Edition), Mike La Chance at LI, Senator Chuck Schumer Thinks Higher Taxes Will Solve Inflation “If you want to get rid of inflation, the only way to do it is to undo a lot of the Trump tax cuts and raise rates.” CNS News, Pelosi on Monday: ‘America Has Seen the Fastest Economic Growth in Almost 40 Years;’ GDP on Thursday: -1.4%. I don't even want to know what color the sky is in her world. Also from the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Afternoon Edition)  The Victory Girl see inflation as GOP Senators Push Back on Student Loan Freeze. Insty, HMM: Economy contracts as ‘Bidenflation’ glides toward ‘Bidencession.’

From JTN, Wisconsin assembly speaker allows 2020 election investigation to continue "Gableman issued subpoenas to the mayors of Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Kenosha, and Racine, as well as election managers in the state. So far, almost every single one of those people have ignored Gableman’s subpoenas." Democrat centers dodging accountability? What's new? Also from John Solomon at JTN, Biden DOJ coordinated legal assault on Georgia election integrity law with liberal groups, "Justice Department now hiding contents of communications, claiming they are protected by attorney privileges, according to memo released under FOIA."

Emails and memos obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and reviewed by Just the News show extensive communications between DOJ officials and some of the biggest names in the liberal legal advocacy world, including the NAACP, the ACLU, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The communications also include the Perkins Coie law firm, which represented the Hillary Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee and now finds itself enmeshed in Special Counsel John Durham's prosecution of Michael Sussmann, a former partner at the firm who is accused of lying to the FBI when he spread false Russia dirt on Donald Trump back in 2016, the memos show.

At Am Think, Flyoverpen thinks Mike Pence was Right.  Front Page reviews the New Dinesh D'Souza Documentary that EXPOSES Ballot Harvesting in 2020 Election "A criminal cartel operating in the dead of night?"

At 11Alive, Georgia governor poll | Brian Kemp vs. David Perdue & Brian Kemp vs. Stacey Abrams results. Kemp ahead, but both beat Abrams. AllahPundit feigns concern, Uh oh: Is Trump writing off David Perdue? Politico wish casts, Republican who refuses to bend the knee to Trump surges in Ohio Senate race, but JD Vance still leads. 

Breitbart reports Blue States Used Democrat-Passed Coronavirus Relief Funds to Implement CRT in Schools. Never let a good crisis go to waste. At HE, Illinois School District Teaching Preschoolers About Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation in New Curriculum. They're never too young to groom. Eric Lendrum at Am Great documents  Department of Education Training Session Attempts to Change Biology Facts in Favor of Transgenderism. 

AllahPundit thinks Disney looking for way to let DeSantis "save face" when he loses the fight over their special district. Why did they want a special district in the first place?

At Breitbart, Piers Morgan Viewership Crashes 70 Percent After Trump Aide Crushes His Mishandling of Deceptively Edited Interview Promo. I wondered about Fox's decision to bring him back.

At Da Fed, Tristan Justice wonders What Has Murkowski’s Vote For Deb Haaland Done For Alaska? Nothing, but it gets her invited to parties in D.C. 

Ramping up in time for the midterms? Ryan King at WaEx, Jan. 6 committee schedules rare public hearings. They need to leave salted ground for when the Republicans take over. At ET, Mark Tapscott documents how Nonprofit Pushing Jan. 6 Ballot Disqualifications Is Funded, Led by Left-Wing Activists "Just minutes after Donald Trump was sworn in as president in January 2017, Free Speech for People (PFS), working with RootsAction, another obscure left-wing activist group, launched the website ImpeachDonaldTrumpNow.org." From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Evening Edition), The Geller Report: “Nonprofit” Pushing 1/6 Ballot Disqualifications Funded & Led By Democrats. The redoubtable Julie Kelly at Am Great, rails on McConnell’s ‘Exhilarating’ Insurrection "When it comes to January 6, there are no coincidences. " At CNS News, Rep. Maria Salazar Slams Media: 'No One is Asking' Pelosi 'What She Knew' About Jan. 6, 'Do Your Job!'

'Adam Mills' at Am Great, ‘60 Minutes’ Enables FBI Dysfunction, "CBS News’ Scott Pelley, like so much of the legacy media, helped FBI Director Christopher Wray sell lies to the American public." Pretty much what CBS news is for. Fox, Mayorkas won't name 1 domestic terror, White supremacy case referred to DOJ, "Mayorkas has called White supremacy the top terrorism-related threat to the homeland, but declined to name a case referred to DOJ." White supremacy is so rare, the government subsidizes it. 

Likewise, mis, dis and mal and information, as evidenced by the Biden Ron Klain administrations creation of the "Disinformation Governance Board" in DHS, headed by a nut named Nina Jankowicz who has a long history as a spreader of misdismal information. 'Bonchie' at Red State, Biden’s New ‘Ministry of Truth’ Director Turns out to Be a Raving Lunatic. Thomas Lifson at Am Think, The comical buffoonery of Biden's new disinformation czarina.  From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Evening Edition),Victory Girls, Nina Jankowicz: Biden’s “Mary Poppins Of Misinformation” Breitbart, Joe Biden’s Disinformation Chief Nina Jankowicz Called Herself the ‘Mary Poppins of Disinformation’ on Tik-Tok. John Sexton, Lots of videos of disinformation czar Nina Jankowicz (many feature singing). Breitbart, Watch – Biden Truth Minister Sings: ‘Who Do I F*ck’ to Be ‘Rich, Famous, and Powerful’. Ask Kamala. Also, Biden’s Disinformation Chief Nina Jankowicz: Online Mockery of Kamala Harris a Threat to Democracy and National Security. At TNP, Ministry of Truth: Joe Biden’s New ‘Disinformation Board’ Director is a Ukrainian Govt Advisor Who Was ‘Pleased’ By The Censorship Of Hunter Biden’s Hard Drive.

Seriously, a "Disinformation Governance Board?" How Orwellian is that? Jeff Lord at Am Spec, Biden’s Ministry of Truth, "Taking a page from Mussolini and Orwell." Tulsi Gabbard@TulsiGabbard, "Every dictatorship has a propaganda arm—a “Ministry of Truth.” The Biden Administration has now formally joined the ranks of such dictatorships with their creation of the so-called “Disinformation Governance Board.”   At Da Caller, Sen. Ron Johnson Calls For Answers From DHS Over Biden’s ‘Disinformation’ Board, Slams Nina Jankowicz and  ‘They Want To Stifle Dissent’: DeSantis Declares War Against Biden’s ‘Ministry Of Truth’ At DHS. At Da Mail, 'You cannot have a Ministry of Truth in this country': Ron DeSantis says Biden 'won't get away' with having a 'Disinformation' board that can 'silence critics' - as cringeworthy new video shows czar singing about misinformation to Mary Poppins tune Virginia Kruta at Da Wire, ‘Dissolve This Monstrosity Immediately’: Josh Hawley Unloads On Mayorkas In Letter Demanding The End Of ‘Disinformation’ Board. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.29.22 (Evening Edition), The Geller Report: DGB – Biden’s Ministry Of Truth To Police Internet Speech. NYPo, Biden blasted for policing free speech with ‘dystopian’ disinformation bureau. 

Matt Vespa at Town Hall, Fox New Host Zeroes in on Why Biden Wants a 'Ministry of Truth'. Tuckah! The Conservative Brief, Tucker: Time For Americans to ‘Draw The Line’ With Biden Over ‘Ministry of Truth.’   Nick Arama at Red State says WH Response on 'Disinformation Board' Shows Just How Desperate for Control They Are. Ace, in red font, cites Tucker, "This Is the Point Where We Have to Draw the Line."

And some DIY on the Musk/Twitter front:

Google Introduces Prompts to Make Sure You Write Like a Leftist | FrontpageMag
Washington Post’s Defense Of Twitter Makes Even Elon Musk Look Good
Elon Musk Probably Isn’t Thinking About Twitter In The Way You Do – Issues & Insights
Faith in Princes - The American Mind
This 2020 Time Article Explains Why The Left Fears Losing Twitter
Speaking of “disinformation” | Power Line
Musks's Twitter Buyout Deal May Unravel – PJ Media
Ace of Spades HQ Elon Musk: Say, Has Anyone Noticed That the Left Has Gotten Very Extreme The Past Few Years...?
Why Twitter Is Unlikely To Become The ‘Digital Town Square’ Elon Musk Envisions | FiveThirtyEightThese people left Twitter after Elon Musk's bid on the platform
WaMazonPo: Musk's bid for Twitter could still fall apart, you know – HotAir
Can anyone save us from Twitter? – HotAir
Report: Musk dismayed by Twitter's "insane" decision to ban Trump – HotAir
The ongoing battle over Elon Musk's political polarization meme – HotAir
Washington Post’s Defense Of Twitter Makes Even Elon Musk Look Good
Naomi Wolf Eloquently Deconstructs the Terms Dis, Mis, and Malinformation - The Last Refuge
Congressional Representative Stressed About Twitter Causing Hate Crimes - The Last Refuge
‘I’m dead’! Elon Musk’s comeback to AOC’s criticism is the ‘LOL of the century’ – twitchy.com
Jack Dorsey unleashes a ‘patently untrue’ thread on the mistakes he made while leading Twitter – twitchy.com
Twitter – We Knew The Game Was Rigged, but Damn… | Monster Hunter Nation
The truth shall set you free, and the extreme left are afraid that Libs of Tik Tok will set some Democrats free of their party! – THE FIRST STREET JOURNAL.
Ace of Spades HQ 21st Century Atavism – My Oligarch Must Protect Me From My Enemies’ Oligarchs

Rule 5 Saturday - Witcher Women

This Rule 5 post celebrates the women of The Witcher, Net Flix's attempt to fill the void left by Game of Thrones. It's not GOT, but I found it at least amusing.

Two women are among the main characters, Anya Chalotra as Yennifer, a pig slopper turned powerful sorceress (left) and Freya Allan as Princess Cirilla aka Cirri, (right) as a child prize and later wunderkind. 

Together, and separately they romp a fiction earth with the Witcher, a mutant warrior created by magic to help destroy the monster plaguing mankind. Yep, it's kind of hokey...

Anya Chalotra (born 1994 or 1995) is a British actress primarily known for her role as Yennefer of Vengerberg in the Netflix original series The Witcher. She is also known for appearing in Wanderlust.
. . .
Chalotra was born in Wolverhampton, England, to an Indian father and English mother.

Some NSFW from the Witcher. 

Freya Allan (born 6 September 2001) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Princess Cirilla of Cintra in the Netflix series The Witcher. She also appears as young Sam in the 2021 film Gunpowder Milkshake and as the younger version of The Widow in the AMC series Into the Badlands.
. . .
Allan played a minor role in the first episode of the 2019 BBC drama The War of the Worlds.  The same year she appeared on the front cover of Schön! magazine, whilst they were celebrating their 10th anniversary.

Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has Rule Five Sunday: Lisa Gerrard and FMJRA 2.0: RIP Klaus Schulze up and running at The Other McCain. Linked at Proof Positive in the weekly Best of the Web* and at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama.

Beach Report 4/29/22

Still in long pants and long sleeve shirts, with temperatures in the low 50s under sunny skies, and moderate NW wind

We caught the tide on the way up, and we had a really good day in the fossil mines. Georgia found this honking Snaggletooth parasymphyseal. This easily takes a space on the kitchen window sill.

I was feeling left out, until I found this big Mako, also destined for a stay on the top shelf

Overall 49 teeth, 3 crab claws, a couple of ray pieces. 

Half Way to Recession, Biden Stumbles, and more

KT at Haut Hair has a Dem pollster's bad news for Democrats: Avoid publicity if you attend Nerd Prom. John Sexton (also at Haut Hair) read WaPoo so you don't have to, Washington Post: Are Democrats headed for long-term catastrophe in the Senate? 

Democrats are likely to lose 3-4 Senate seats this year and that’s just the start of their troubles. Bazelon goes on to point out that 2024 is looking ever worse for Democrats. There are six Senate seats up for reelection in 2024 in states where Biden either lost the state or won narrowly. If Democrats perform close to their historical average in that election they have a good chance of losing those six plus another two more that would be on the bubble.

Kira Davis at Red State points out, The Left Has Created Their Own Misery JB Shurk at Am Think channels Democrats: 'It's Not Us, It's You!'. NYT, cited at Haut Hair hears Dems ask if they should hit back harder against the GOP.

Halfway to a recession, as JTN reports, U.S. economic growth in first quarter declined at annualized rate of 1.4%, feds report. The definition of recession is two quarters of negative growth. Capt. Ed at Haut Hair, Stagflation arrives? GDP falls in Q1, but ... "the good news is that the shrink is fairly technical. The bad news, however, is that there may be no reason to think that will only pop up in Q1." Ace, We're Officially Unofficially In a Recession as the Government Reports the First Quarter GDP Shrank 1.4%,  "Unexpectedly, the most incompetent and socialist (fake) president in history delivers the expected bitter fruits of incompetence and socialism." Insty from his gig at NYPo, Stagflation is staring Biden in the face — but he refuses to change course. Zach Evans at NR, Biden ‘Not Concerned about Recession,’ Touts ‘Enormous Growth’ after Economy Shrinks in First Quarter. Ace, Biden Seeks Sweeping New Powers To Confiscate Wealth to Fight The Enemy, "To fight the fascists, we had to become the fascists. Eric Grover at Am Spec, Fed to the Rescue? A Fanboy Account of the Central Bank’s COVID Intervention "Chairman Jerome Powell’s pandemic response continued a trend of increasing involvement in our economy." Scott Powell at Am Think thinks Mounting U.S. Debt and Misguided Foreign Policy Risk a Dollar Doomsday. I just had to do it.

Mary Chastain at LI reports Biden Blocks Oil Drilling on Millions of Acres in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve. Paul Bedard at WaEx, Voters know: High gas prices are Biden’s fault. Da Caller,  GOP Campaign Arm To Sell Biden-Themed Gas Canisters As Gas Prices Stay High. Alas, I have more gas cans than I know what to do with. Wa Free Bee, Pain at the Pump: Virginia Dems Block Youngkin’s Gas Tax Holiday. 

Mike Ginsberg at Da Caller wonders Can Kevin McCarthy Overcome His Very Bad Week? Is anyone outside the beltway even paying attention? Kurt Schlicter claims Conservatives Are Not Giving Spineless Leaders Any Second Chances. Capt. Ed reads a New book: Manchin would flip to GOP -- if McConnell stepped down. I'm OK with that, but right now Manchin is a power, as a Republican Senator he'd be a weak leftie one. We already have enough of them. Speaking of which, the NYT claims Shunned by the right, Murkowski bets big on the center in Alaska. AllahPundit at Haut Hair Yes, let's ban senators from running for president His version of the anti-Cruz missile. Politico is pleased to report It's Trump vs. Cruz in Ohio and Pa. Senate races. Breitbart argues Party Bylaws Did Not Disqualify Trump-Backed Pick for Nashville District, Despite Tennessee GOP Chairman’s Claims, for Morgan Ortagus and a couple more. AllahPundit whines about Dem rep: What evidence is there that Democrats hate Clarence Thomas for being a black conservative? Plenty. Tristan Justice at Da Fed reports Far-Left Congressional Black Caucus Uses Liz Cheney To Fundraise. She's complicit. 

Shelby Talcott at Da Caller has Resurfaced Interview Reveals McCain Associate’s Leak To Buzzfeed Was Alleged ‘Hail Mary’ To Prevent Trump Inauguration. Reuters, Trump allies breach U.S. voting systems in search of 2020 fraud ‘evidence’. How dare you look under our hood! From Hollywood in Toto, The Elon Musk Effect: ‘2000 Mules’ May Thrive in Twitter 2.0, "Dinesh D'Souza's election expose arrives at the perfect cultural moment."

In the wake of New York’s Highest Court Strikes Down Democrats’ ‘Undemocratic’ Gerrymandering, All 7 judges were appointed by Democrats, (Wa Free Bee), John Sexton at Haut Hair reports Princeton investigating head of gerrymandering lab for possible data manipulation. 

Alex Parker at Red State says Democrat Legislators Want Children Taught Sex, Specifically 'Pleasure-Based Sexual Relations'. Breitbart, Department of Education Training Video Features Biology Teacher Saying Ovaries Produce Eggs, Not Women. Rick Moran at PJ Media hears of a Kansas Lawmaker Denounced for Feeling Discomfort at Sharing a Bathroom With Transgender Colleague. At Wa Free Bee again, Iowa Dem Wants To Keep Kids in ‘Failing’ Public Schools, Just Not Her Daughter "Congressional candidate Christina Bohannan sent daughter to private school for 'personalized education,' then joined school's board." Da Caller claims an EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Chip Roy Demands Answers From School District Over ‘Radical’ Segregation Experiment On 5th Graders, "As part of the experiment, dark-haired students were labeled more privileged, while others were deemed not as intelligent, told to clean up after the other children and given games with missing pieces so they were unable to play properly, NISD parents Brandi and Mike Lininger confirmed to the DCNF." Da Wire reports  Biden Tells Conservatives To Stop Making Teachers The ‘Target Of The Culture Wars’. Then stop trying to groom our kids. 

At Politico, DeSantis officials say Florida won’t pay Disney’s debt — but there's no plan yet, "Democrats and the special district say $1 billion in outstanding debt could be unloaded on nearby Orange and Osceola counties." At the Tampa Freep, a Report: Disney Quietly Surrenders To DeSantis, GOP’s “Shock And Awe” "Disney plans to keep quiet about politics after publicly sparring with Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis over legislation related to LGBT content in education, according to The Wall Street Journal." Mission accomplished. 

From Althouse, "Likelihood of Trump Indictment in Manhattan Fades as Grand Jury Wraps Up." The NYT reports.

The grand jury’s expiration at the end of the month does not preclude prosecutors from impaneling another jury.... But impaneling a new grand jury could create challenges for any potential case. Mr. Trump’s lawyers could argue — and a judge might agree — that prosecutors were inappropriately hunting for a more favorable group of jurors.

He's escaped more trap than Indiana Jones and Road Runner together. He must be the cleanest man in politics. 

At Am Spec, Jeff Lord speculates that The January 6 Committee Indicts Itself , "248-page filing of self-indictment released. Sister Toldja at Red State, Heartbreak on Capitol Hill as Democrats Come to a Realization About Jan. 6 Committee, Emily Jashinsky@emilyjashinsky "Dems are telling the press they’re worried the country is too “distracted” by inflation to care about their January 6 hearings." Ace, Sad Dull Pudgy Clown Chuck Todd: "Voters Just Don't Care About January 6th At All. Waah waah wah wah wahhhhhh." At WaEx, Paul Bedard has Eyes on Cheney as Jan. 6 panel mulls Ginni Thomas subpoena. Rusty Weiss at PI hears a Report that Mitch McConnell Was ‘Exhilarated’ That Trump ‘Committed Political Suicide’ On January 6 and 'Bonchie' at Red State has the receipts as Marjorie Taylor Greene Leaves Jim Acosta Stammering After He Confronts Her With a False Narrative. 

Lloyd Billingsley at Front Page, sees Foreshadowing of Bureau Injustice "The FBI’s past political subterfuge previews what lies ahead of midterms and 2024." From Insty, THE FBI IS STARTING TO LOOK KIND OF UNTRUSTWORTHY: Nicki Clyne@nickiclyne, "BREAKING: In the case of US v. Keith Raniere, three forensic experts, including a former FBI Special Agent of 20 years, have filed affidavits affirming that the FBI tampered and planted the child porn evidence presented at trial, in motion to stay appeal."

Apparently we don't have enough dis or misinformation, so the government is creating an agency to take care of that. Breitbart, Department of Homeland Security Sets Up ‘Disinformation Governance Board’ to Fight ‘Misinformation’. Sundance at CTH has the video as Tucker Carlson Emphasizes the Mission Priority of Newest DHS Agency, Disinformation Governance Board. At Insty, THE MINISTRY OF TRUTH IS REAL:

Things got pretty weird, pretty quickly in the wake of Elon Musk’s trial balloon about buying Twitter, a deal that went through Monday, much to the chagrin of the progressive chattering class who were super duper certain the Tesla and SpaceX boy genius was just foolin’ for fun.

Poor NPR, for example, forced to aggregate what Musk might actually do with his new toy (and, to be fair, they pulled from his own public statements), characterizes the sale this way:

“[T]he world’s richest person who has a penchant for theatrics and erratic behavior is about to have the power to reshape discourse on a social network used by more than 200 million people every day.”

They’re not handling it very well.

Hence, the new federally-run truth commission, brought to you courtesy of Homeland Security.

The Biden administration and progressive activists (including former President Obama) sprang into action following Monday’s announcement and — quite literally — began the process of defining disinformation and calling for its regulation to make sure bad speech was addressed and eliminated from the collective safe space.

And more than you could ever want to know about Elon Musk taking Twitter to task (DIY style): 

Congress Needs the CROWD Act to Protect Free Speech - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
Report: Google Turns Off ‘Newspeak’ Correction Tool (For Now) – Summit News
This 2020 Time Article Explains Why The Left Fears Losing Twitter
Instapundit » Blog Archive » OUR RULING CLASS IS COMPOSED OF SORRY SPECIMENS OF HUMANITY: The insecurity and outright envy…
Instapundit » Blog Archive » THAT’S BECAUSE OUR GARBAGE PRESS HAS MADE IT NORMAL: …
Will Babylon Bee get out of Twitter jail? | Washington Examiner
Let's be clear about what it's like to be harassed on Twitter – HotAir
THIS –> Elon Musk has just one word in response to Biden forming his own ‘Ministry of Truth’ as a way to monitor (control) free speech – twitchy.com
Musk Should Choose To Run Twitter Under the Spirit of the First Amendment | Opinion
Althouse: Jack Dorsey called Elon Musk the "singular solution" to Twitter's problems and said "I trust his mission to extend the light of consciousness."
Ace of Spades HQ Twitter Puts a "Sensitive Content" Warning on a Babylon Bee Video About Twitter Employees Being Too Sensitive
The Biggest Loser in Musk’s Twitter Takeover? Chuck Schumer › American Greatness
FCC Rejects Call to Block Elon Musk's Purchase of Twitter | CNSNews
Libs Of TikTok Removed From Social Media Tool For ‘Inappropriate Use’ | The Daily Caller
Tearing Down the Silicon Valley Wall › American Greatness
Elizabeth Warren: We Need Big Tech 'Rules' to 'Break' Elon Musk's Stranglehold
Mollie Hemingway Drops Adam Schiff After Elon Musk’s Twitter Deal Triggers Him | The Daily Wire
EU Threatens Elon Musk: “It’s Not Your Rules Which Will Apply Here” – Summit News
It's about time to crack open Big Tech's black boxes which suppress conservatives
The Elon effect: Trump is suddenly posting on Truth Social again – HotAir
Texas man to Musk: Relocate Twitter to Texas and I'll give you 100 acres for free – HotAir
That was quick: Senate Democrats suggest Musk should be called to testify about his plans for Twitter – HotAir
Robert Reich’s play to put Elon Musk and Colin Kaepernick on the same ‘free speech’ field crumbles quickly – twitchy.com
BREAKING: MTG announces bill to reform Section 230, proposes roundtable with Elon Musk | The Post Millennial
Dem Senator Ed Markey Mocked For Defending Online Censorship As 'Algorithmic Justice' - The Political Insider
Elon Musk suggests name change for Trump's Truth Social
Reasons to think there will be layoffs at Twitter if Elon Musk gains control (Update) – HotAir

Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links.

Fish Pic Friday - From Down Under - Sarah Van Den Broek

Tired of seeing all the same old North American fish being held up by pretty women in bikinis? Not me, but I thought hey, here's something different, Sarah Van Den Broek (aka Sarah Vandy) from Australia, with some fish you've probably never seen before: 

She doesn't fish in a bikini that much (having visited Australia I suspect it has to do with the bugs), but fortunately in her spare time she models swim suits.

Linked at Proof Positive in the weekly Best of the Web* and at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule Five Sunday: Lisa Gerrard and FMJRA 2.0: RIP Klaus Schulze up and running at The Other McCain.

Beach Report 4/28/22

Another late start. By the time we got to the beach the temperature was all the way up to 50 F, with a stiff NW wind.

The tide was well on it's way up, but fossil hunting was OK, 17 teeth, a ray plate, a Tilly bone, and something that puzzles me.

The best of the lot, one of baby sharks old teeth (it's a small White Shark tooth).

Old Man Down, Inflation Up, Gerrymander Slayed, Children Groomed, Fascists Gonna Fasc

From CNS News, Gallup: Biden Job Approval Down in Nearly Every U.S. Subgroup, Especially Ages 18-64. Geezers for Biden! From Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.27.22, Don Surber explains how FJB chants sink Democrats

College is the the breeding ground of Democrats. The mocking of the Democrat Party leader was a turning point. The media ignored it but now scorns it. The chant reminded me of the antiwar chants in the 1960s. Think FJB is harsh? Try, "Hey, Hey, LBJ. How many kids did you kill today?"

From Bob Spencer at Front Page,  Joe Biden Can’t Remember How Long He Has Been President "Guess when he thinks he took office. . ." Yeah, it seems like forever to me too. Unhelpfully, Dave Catron at Am Spec says The 25th Amendment Won’t Fix Our Biden Problem, "It is not and was never meant to be an alternative to impeachment." Buckets of warm spit;  Jim Antle at NYPo has Departures and disasters: Kamala Harris might be the worst veep ever, and that's a high bar indeed. But somebody in the admin has noticed, Mediaite, Biden’s Harsh Dismissal of Kamala Harris During Negotiations Left GOP Senators ‘Taken Aback’: New Book. Capt. Ed at Haut Hair notices despair at Politico: Dems' "despair mounts" over inability to move Biden agenda. Speaking of which, First Street Journal (hereby FSJ) reports Joe Manchin’s popularity soars in West Virginia. On Da Hill, Brent Budowsky thinks Why a Biden comeback may be coming. Political fortunes rise and fall and may rise again, but I think the coming recession will kill that. 

Insty, YOU DON’T SAY: Global stagflation won’t be just a squall that’ll blow over. 

“The new reality with which economies must reckon is higher inflation and slowing economic growth. And a big reason for the current bout of stagflation is a series of supply shocks that have curtailed output and raised costs. The covid pandemic forced many sectors to lock down, disrupted global supplies and produced a persistent reduction in labour supply, especially in the US. Then came Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has driven up various prices. China’s draconian lockdown in major economic hubs has squeezed supplies further. But even without these short-term factors, the medium-term outlook would be darkening. There are many reasons to worry about stagflationary conditions haunting the global economy with higher prices, lower growth, and possible recessions in many places.”

Left out: 80% of All US Dollars in Existence Have Been Printed in Just the Last Two Years.

Also left out from 2020: US industrial production tanks the most in 101 years amid factory lockdowns.

From the Mint, Global stagflation won’t be just a squall that’ll blow over. I&I, See If You Can Follow Yellen’s Bouncing Inflation Ball. At the Wa Free Bee, The Media Don’t Get What You Don’t Get About Biden’s Economic Boom. "Rather than criticizing the American Rescue Plan for driving inflation to 40-year highs, the New York Times blames Americans for not appreciating the Democratic Party's "technocratically elegant and often invisible policies."" Breitbart, Stocks fall ahead of earnings from Big Tech companies. At PJ Media, Athena Thorne wonders How Bad Will the Biden Recession Be?. At Da Fed, Elle Reynolds warns The Inflation Draining Your Wallet, Grocery Cart, And Gas Tank Is Far Steeper Than 8 Percent. Southern Wisconsin Times, Wisconsin gas station owner on $400 BP fine: 'Truth hurts, doesn't it?'. 

At NYPo, An astonishing turnaround in New Yorkers’ concerns is bad news for Democrats. Dave Drucker at WaEx sees a poll, GOP candidate Walker leads Democratic Sen. Warnock in Georgia Senate race. WaPoo, cited at Haut Hair, thinks Trump’s Georgia allies are running on 2020 grievance. It may not work. Ah, but it might too. That's why we have elections. At Haut Hair, AllahPundit is pissed by  Tucker: Do we want the next GOP House majority led by a "puppet of the Democratic Party"? Chris Barron at HE writes In Defense of Trump’s Endorsement of Dr. Oz. Birds of a feather. 

The criticism of Oz’s candidacy has been almost 100% focused on whether or not Oz is sufficiently conservative on abortion, on guns and on cultural issues in general. Critics point to things Dr. Oz said during the long run of his show and on segments his show ran. This criticism is legitimate, but it is worth pointing out that this is the exactly same criticism that was levied at candidate Trump in 2015.

Mark Leibovich at the Slantic (cited at Haut Hair) thinks he knows How to beat Trump in 2024. “The problem with 2016 is that people waited ’til they were at their politically weakest point before they started pounding Trump”

Also from Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.27.22, Joy at Legal Insurrection is joyful as  NY Supremes Throw Out Democrats’ Gerrymandered Redistricting Map. Spence Brown at Town Hall, Breaking: NY Court Sides With Republicans in Massive Blow to Dems' Gerrymander. John Sexton at Town Hall, NY Court of Appeals rejects redistricting maps 'drawn with an unconstitutional partisan intent'. "The NY Times calls it a “stinging defeat” for New York Democrats who gerrymandered the state by explicitly disregarding a law passed to prevent such behavior." Sundance at CTH, New York State Appellate Court Rules Against Democrat Gerrymandering Effort, 2022 Primary Likely Delayed.

At Am Con, Heyden Ludwig predicts continued efforts at Making Vote By Mail Permanent "Major Democratic donors like Mark Zuckerberg aren’t finished federalizing America’s elections." Sundance has the video, as Dinesh D’Souza Discusses His Perspective on the 2020 Election After a Full Review of the Illegal Ballot Harvesting. 

At Da Wire, ‘This Is A Cult’: How Wealthy Santa Barbara Foreshadowed The Fight Against Crackpot Curriculum. John Kline at Am Spec does the research and finds Critical Race Theory Is Derived From a Laughably Dumb Series of Space Alien Stories, "Appallingly bad critical race theory science fiction showcases the ideology’s toxicity." Not even L. Ron Hubble level bad. Bruce Thornton at Front Page, Diversity, Free Speech, and the 'Woke' Assault on America,  "We are living in Orwellian times." Nick Arama at Red State watches as  Biden's Brain Breaks, Then What He Said About Kids in School Will Make Parents Shudder. RNC Research@RNCResearch, "Biden to teachers: “They're not somebody else's children. They're yours when you're in the classroom." Ace, BIDEN TO TEACHERS: "THEY'RE NOT SOMEONE ELSE'S CHILDREN... THEY'RE LIKE YOURS WHEN THEY'RE IN THE CLASSROOM". At the Political Hat, Pre-School Gender Indoctrination. Christopher F. Rufo @realchrisrufo "SCOOP: The Evanston/Skokie School District has adopted a radical gender curriculum that encourages PK-3 students to celebrate the transgender flag, break the "gender binary" established by white "colonizers," and experiment with neo-pronouns such as "ze," "zir," and "tree." Megan Fox at PJ Media has the video, [WATCH] Amazon Employees Hold Secret Zoom Meeting Plotting to Ban Conservative Children's Book. At Twitchy, Drew Holden notes how ‘so-called’ disappeared from the media’s reporting on the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill. AllahPundit contented, Disney reassures investors: Don't worry, Florida can't cancel our special district

Ace, in partially italic red font, with the (ordinary) flaming skull, Department of Homeland Security Creates "Disinformation Governance Board" Censorship Authority; "New Censorship Kommissar Bought Laptop "Russian Disinformation" Op from Deep State Colleagues and Pushed the Lie on Twitter. Via the Wombat the Weasel Zippers: Biden’s DHS Creating An Actual Ministry Of Truth, also, Kevin McCarthy Told Liz Cheney He’s Like To See More Conservatives Banned From Twitter. Twitchy, Here’s a flashback tweet from the new head of the DHS Disinformation Governance Board that didn’t age well. Nina Jankowicz@wiczipedia "Back on the "laptop from hell," apparently- Biden notes 50 former natsec officials and 5 former CIA heads that believe the laptop is a Russian influence op. Trump says "Russia, Russia, Russia."

Ace again, Kevin McCarthy Asked Liz Cheney, Can't The Social Media Monopolies Take Away the Accounts of Congressmen That Question the Election Results, Too? and The Washington Post, Which Just Doxed an Orthodox Jewish Woman and Linked Her Address in a City Where Orthodox Jews Are Routinely Targeted for Hate Crimes, Says That Criticizing Twitter's Prominent $17 Million Per Year Censorship Queen Is Harassment, "We're allowed to dox you and post your physical home address so that our antifa lunatics can track you down and kill you, but you're not allowed to publicly criticize our Tech Censorship Collaborators." At Town Hall, John Stossel take on an oldie but goodie, Wikipedia Bias. Chet Richards at Am Think thinks You Can't Have a Functioning Nation without Free Speech. I agree.

And then, there's the whole Elon Musk thing presented in DIY format:

Campus Reform | Elon Musk's Twitter grab is making academics angry, nervous
Instapundit » Blog Archive » THEIR TEARS TASTE LIKE FINE CHAMPAGNE: Elon Musk’s Twitter grab is making academics angry, nervous….
This Washington Post story about Elon Musk prompting attacks on Twitter employees is absurd – HotAir
How Elon Musk can liberate Twitter – HotAir
Althouse: "What exactly does [Elon Musk] believe can’t be said on [Twitter] right now?"
Conservatives see spike in followers on Elon Musk's Twitter
More Conservatives Seeing Huge Jumps In Twitter Followers After Musk Takeover | The Daily Wire
5 Ways Elon Musk Plans to Change Twitter - The Foreign Desk | by Lisa Daftari
Elon Musk's Twitter Deal Is 'Dangerous,' Says Cate Blanchett - Variety
Ben Shaprio Calls For Elon Musk to Fire Everyone at Twitter
Opinion | Twitter is good. I hope Elon Musk doesn’t ruin it. - The Washington Post
Elon Musk Responds to Russian Collusion Hoaxer Currently Working at Twitter, Points to Big Changes – RedState
Elon Musk's Twitter Takeover Reveals the Left For What It Is – PJ Media
How the elites lost the Twitter war - UnHerd
Jack Dorsey, Twitter co-founder, lauds Elon Musk's takeover: 'Elon is the singular solution I trust' - TheBlaze
Don’t expect a liberal exodus from Elon Musk’s Twitter - POLITICO

Tattoo Thursday

The Wombat has Rule Five Sunday: Lisa Gerrard  up and running at The Other McCain.

Real Housewives of MAGA Country?

Breitbart, ‘Real Housewives’ Star Siggy Flicker: Most Housewives Throughout the Franchise are Trump Supporters, But Stay Silent to Keep Their Jobs

Real Housewives of New Jersey star Siggy Flicker told Breitbart News Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow in a Friday interview on SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Daily that “most of Housewives throughout the franchise are Trump supporters,” but in order to keep their jobs, they either stay silent or pretend to love President Joe Biden.

“I’m not a crier — but I cried all the time, because I hated every minute of being on that show,” Flicker told Marlow of her experience on Real Housewives.

 

“Imagine having to hang out with the liberal entertainment industry five days a week, eight hours a day,” she added. “You’re literally swimming in a swamp, and it is disgusting. There is nothing that I enjoyed about it. I couldn’t wait to get out of there.”

Flicker added that “it wasn’t because of the people at Bravo, they had nothing to do with the show. They hired the cast, and then they hired the production company. The production company was intolerable.”

“Once they found out that I was a proud Trump supporter and a proud conservative, and I was not backing down from my views, they came at me in the editing room,” the former Real Housewife of New Jersey explained.

“I had people, the cast people, my friends on the show say, ‘Siggy, pretend you’re a liberal, tell them you hate Donald Trump’ — and I said, ‘I can’t do it,'” Flicker said.

“And I want your viewers to understand, most of Housewives throughout the franchise are Trump supporters,” she disclosed. “In order to keep their jobs, they don’t talk about politics, and some of them, if they do talk about politics, they’ll talk about their love for Biden.” 

Flicker added “in the liberal entertainment industry — I’m talking about A-listers — have called me. All Trump supporters. And they’re quiet about it.”

In the editing room, Flicker explained, the production company would “take a five-hour scene, and they edit it into a two-minute scene.”

“You see it now with Piers Morgan and Donald Trump,” she said. “You can create any narrative you want when you don’t show the viewers the full footage of what happened.”

So they're not just stupid women, they just play it on TV? Makes sense, they're actually mature women with some accomplishments behind them. 

You still couldn't make me watch RHONJ on a bet.

The Wombat has Rule Five Sunday: Lisa Gerrard up and running at The Other McCain.