Tuesday, December 17, 2024

Science Finds Bears DO Shit in the Woods

 Earth.com, Grizzly bears help huckleberries thrive in a changing climate

Who knew that there’s a significant bond between grizzly bears and huckleberries? Their interaction transcends the simple paradigm of consumption, offering a deep dive into the realm of plant ecology.

In a recent study led by scientists from the University of British Columbia’s Vancouver and Okanagan campuses, an eye-opening revelation was made about grizzly bears.

The study was focused on the behavior of grizzly bears in the Canadian Rocky Mountains during the summer season. The researchers found that while these bears enjoy a feast of huckleberries, they are doing more for the development of these plants than just eating.

“Bears don’t just eat huckleberries – they help them grow in new places,” noted Aza Fynley Kuijt, the study’s lead researcher from UBC’s Faculty of Forestry.

“Our findings show that this mutual relationship is crucial for both species, especially as climate change shifts suitable habitats for huckleberries.”

At the heart of the study, an aspect of plant ecology known as endozoochory was examined.

Simply put, endozoochory is the process where animals eat fruits containing seeds and later disperse those seeds over large areas through their droppings. In the case of grizzly bears and huckleberries, the researchers found this process to be highly beneficial.

When bears eat huckleberries, the seeds travel through their digestive system and are deposited far from the original plant. This not only spreads the seeds to new areas but also improves their chances of germination, helping the huckleberries grow in fresh and potentially better-suited habitats.

The team found that seeds which pass through a grizzly bear’s digestive system are much more likely to sprout and grow into huckleberry plants. These seeds have a germination rate of up to 28.5%, compared to only 0.2% for seeds that remain inside uneaten berries.

Why the difference? The digestive process removes the berry pulp, which contains substances that prevent the seeds from sprouting (known as germination inhibitors).

By breaking down this barrier, the bears’ digestion enhances the seeds’ ability to grow, making the process essential for the huckleberries’ reproduction and survival.

Imagine the movement of seeds being akin to an expansive, rippling shadow, journeying up to seven kilometers (4.3 miles) from their original feeding site.

This is what the researchers discovered from the 74 collared grizzly bears observed in the study. Up to 50% of the seeds consumed by the bears were spread about a kilometer from their source.

This is what I like to call "No Duh Science". Perfectly obvious before you do the work, which lets you go to nice places and do things you might do on vacation, except for that looking for and through bear shit part. 

at No comments:

Menhaden? No Problem Says MDDNR

Menhaden

Shore Daily News, Maryland state study concludes young menhaden stock is strong - Shore Daily News

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has released its 2024 juvenile striped bass survey results, highlighting a positive trend for two key forage species in the Chesapeake Bay: menhaden and spot. While striped bass reproduction continues to face challenges, menhaden abundance was nearly equal to last year, which was the highest recorded since 1990. Spot abundance reached its highest level since 1988. These species are crucial to the Bay’s ecosystem, serving as a primary food source for many fish and wildlife.

The annual survey, conducted at 22 sites across the Bay, monitored the reproductive success of striped bass and the abundance of other fish species. In 2024, over 56,000 fish from 56 species were captured. DNR emphasized the importance of these findings, noting that the survey provides strong evidence of a healthy menhaden population, despite some industry claims to the contrary.

Ben Landry, Vice President of Public Affairs at Ocean Fleet Services, praised the survey as further evidence of the fishery’s sustainability, which he attributes to collaborative efforts between industry, fishery managers, and scientists. The Atlantic menhaden fishery is certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council, with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission repeatedly confirming that it is not overfished.

This would be more reassuring if MDDNR hadn't insisted for years that Chesapeake Bay Striped Bass were just doing fine, thank you very much, as we, the people on the water could see a continual decline, only to come around to it in the last few years. 

at No comments:

Flotsam and Jetsam - Droning on About Drones

Sundance at CTH hosts the Full Presser Video – President Trump Answers Media Questions in Lengthy Mar-a-Lago Press Conference. Ace, Trump Press Conference: There'll be "Hell to Pay" if Hamas Doesn't Release Its Hostages Before My Inauguration; Republican Senators Who Aren't "Reasonable" Will Be Primaried "That clip and others below the fold. Some other clips from his hour and fifteen minute press conference: On the drones: Collin Rugg @CollinRugg," JUST IN: Donald Trump says the federal government knows exactly what the drones are up to, says "something strange" is going on. Trump said he decided to cancel his trip to Bedminster. "Our military knows where they took off from. If it's a garage, they can go right into that garage. They know where it came from and where it went." "For some reason, they don't want to comment. And I think they'd be better off saying what it is." "Something strange is going on. For some reason, they don't want to tell the people." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair hears Trump: Of Course Biden Admin Knows About the Drones. At Althouse, Trump reveals something of what he knows/thinks about the drones (but declines to talk about whether he's received an intelligence briefing). Sundance at CTH, President Trump Answers Questions About Drones, “Something Strange is Going On” I'm quite sure they know what's happening. Clearly, a lot of it is akin to 50's style UFO hysteria, with all sorts of random sightings being attributed to drones. But there are drones out there, and I suspect the military has a pretty good accounting of the ones big enough to matter.  From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.16.24, Twitchy, Return Of Republican President & Press Conferences Stirs CNN’s Daniel Dale From Four-Year Slumber.

Elle Purnell at Da Fed wants you to Watch CNN, MSNBC Repeatedly Air The Same Defamatory Phrase That Cost ABC $15 Million  At Mediaite, MSNBC Rips ABC-Trump Defamation Case Settlement, Says Comment for Which ABC Paid Trump $15 Million ‘Seems to Hold Up’. So sue them too, in a Trump friendly jurisdiction. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair sees the  NYT Hits Panic Button Over Trump Media Defamation Lawsuits for 'Critical Coverage'. At Fox, Liberals unload on ABC's settlement with Trump, defend George Stephanopoulos: 'Knee bent, ring kissed'. WaEx's Byron York discourses on Donald Trump, ABC News, and the toxic legacy of the E. Jean Carroll case  "The development particularly shocked Trump’s most determined adversaries. He’s not supposed to win a case like this! The media have a right to say virtually anything they want about the former president and current president-elect and not have to worry about Trump having some legal recourse to fight back. That, at least, was their implicit assumption." From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.16.24, Twitchy: James Woods Shreds Adam Schiff’s Meet The Press Spin, Chuck Todd – Holding Journalists Accountable For Lies Sets A Dangerous Precedent, 

Althouse, "And and when I talk to people close to President-elect Trump and people who work for him, people on the outside — allies — they already see this as a resounding success." "Said Jonathan Swan at the end of today's episode of the NYT "Daily" podcast, "Pete Hegseth Was Toast. The MAGA Swarm Came to His Rescue."" Hat Hair cites OutKick, "When They Smell Blood in the Water': Clay Travis Defends Unleashing the Hegseth. At OTP, Trump Dares Republicans To Challenge RFK Jr., Tulsi Gabbard And Kash Patel. Sundance, Thom Tillis Threatens Trump Supporters to “Stand Down” on Pressure Because He Only Needs 4 Votes in Senate to Destroy Any Nomination. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.16.24, The Federalist, If Sen. Thom Tillis Sabotages Trump’s Cabinet Picks, Voters Should Fire Him.  Althouse cites the WaPoo, "When the topic turned to vaccines, the discussion was not about banning the product...." ""Kennedy spoke about the need for better study of the vaccine dosing schedule for newborns and the rise in chronic disease, while also rattling off statistics about the increase in autism rates despite multiple studies that have shown no link between vaccines and the disorder and World Health Organization estimates that immunizations have saved 154 million lives.. Here Trump redirected the conversation... while backing up Kennedy’s desire for more research...." 

Stephen Kruiser at PJM, The Trump 47 Reckoning Is Hitting the Dems From All Sides Now. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.16.24, The Great Victor Davis Hanson at Am Great, hopes Are the Years of Madness Ending? "The welcomed counterrevolution is one of restoration. No one knows quite what is ahead, but all know that it is at least better already than the current nightmare." Hat Hair's Beege Welborn, looks at Democratic Dead Reckoning. "In this instance, I don't mean being able to find their way out of a paper bag without celestial aids for navigation because it's patently obvious they can't. The exact opposite. I am using 'dead' in the literal sense - deceased, departed, expired, gone, stinks in the sink after 72 hours, aka MUERTO."

Paul Bedard at WaEx hears DEI contractors will be first fired at Pentagon. Liz Stauffer at LI, Veteran Journalist Dismantles Liberal Case Against Trump’s Deportation Plans: ‘It’s Easier Than You Think’ 
“Too many analysts [whom he refers to as deportation deniers] have confused what they want to be true with what actually is true.” At Da Caller, Trump Reportedly Looks To Privatize US Postal Service. At OTP, Gov. Youngkin Announces No Taxes On Tips In Virginia. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. OTP, Trump: Biden’s Border Wall Fire Sale ‘Almost A Criminal Act’

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.16.24, The Gellers reports Mail-In Ballot Fraud Study Finds Trump ‘Almost Certainly’ Won In 2020 and Transterrestrial Musings suspects Voter Fraud In 2020.  Steve Richards at JTN, House GOP vows to refer ActBlue fundraising probe to incoming Trump Justice Department, "Chairman Bryan Steil’s committee has probed ActBlue over lax security measures that may have allowed illicit foreign money to flow to American political campaigns." Center Square AZ reports Arizona Republicans introduce Florida-style election reforms to speed results.

Mike Miller at RedState sees James O’Keefe Release Shocking Video of NSC Advisor Admitting Biden Is Far Worse Off Than We Know: 

Ace, "It's Just a Circus of Lies:" Democrat Megadonors Want the "Obama People" Out of the Party, Claiming They Caused the Historic Loss and Are Just "Grifters". "This is a wonderful story. I don't know how true it is or how widespread these sentiments are, though." John Sexton at Hat Hair hears the Atlantic: Democrats Went Too Far Left on Immigration. From the Pop Times the Mother of Suicide Victim Slams Biden for Commuting the Sentence of Corrupt Judge Who Convicted Her Son in “Kids for Cash” Scheme.

Ben Whedon at JTN reports that, as expected, Judge rejects Trump bid to toss conviction in Bragg case over SCOTUS immunity ruling. "Judge Juan Merchan ruled on Monday that the Bragg case related “entirely to unofficial conduct entitled to no immunity protections."
Libs of TikTok@libsoftiktokm "Madison, WI police chief says he doesn’t know if the shooter was transgender and then uses he, she, and they pronouns to describe the shooter. Very odd and bizarre..." pagliacci the hated @Slatzism "I have made contact with the alleged boyfriend of the Wisconsin shooter. He has very graciously provided me the full manifesto, which I verified by having him screen record himself opening it from a direct link the shooter sent to him via WhatsApp. . . ." Althouse, "In the manifesto, called 'War Against Humanity,' the author writes that they have 'grown to hate people, and society' and calls their parents 'scum.'" ""The author also writes that they acquired weapons 'by lies and manipulation, and my father's stupidity' and describes wanting to die by suicide, but feeling like carrying out a shooting was 'better for evolution rather than just one stupid boring suicide.'" Writes Newsweek, in "Natalie Rupnow's Reported Manifesto: What We Know" (about the school shooting that took place in my city yesterday).
Newsweek also reports President Joe Biden's hasty response: "We need Congress to act. Now. From Newtown to Uvalde, Parkland to Madison.... Congress must pass commonsense gun safety laws: Universal background checks. A national red flag law. A ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines...."

But when he pardoned his son Hunter for violating existing gun laws, Joe Biden attacked the prosecution as unfair and biased. One might have thought he'd refrain from calling for more gun laws when he so recently and conspicuously treated a gun law as not justifying enforcement. And yet didn't we all expect it — expect that next time there's a school shooting, Joe would indignantly cry out for more gun laws? #hypocrisy
Catturd ™@catturd2 "He didn’t say jack shit about gun control, for weeks, after the CEO shooting. See how that works?" Quote Libs of TikTok@libsoftiktok, "Biden just released a statement calling for gun control in response to the shooting today at a school in Madison, Wisconsin." 'Becca Downs at TownHall, We Have Another Democrat Making Excuses for Murder of United HealthCare CEO. Victory Girls note a Socialist Creates “Most Wanted CEO” Deck of Cards After United Healthcare Shooting. Dave Strom at Hat Hair, By The Numbers: Who Supports Political Violence. Scott Rasmussen@ScottWRasmussen "On a related question, 13% said it is sometimes justifiable to murder someone like United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson as a means to bring about important societal change. The @NapolitanNews survey found that 71% disagree and say such murder is never justifiable. Reply Scott Rasmussen@ScottWRasmussen "Younger voters (34%), Progressive Democrats (29%), people who talk politics every day (24%), and those with a postgraduate degree (21%) were more likely than others to say that such murder is sometimes justifiable."

The Washington Reporter has an Op-Ed: Houston Keene: The federal bureaucracy is appointed, not anointed, "Our society has become far too polarized. Unfortunately, that polarization has spread to what is supposed to be a nonpartisan stable of civil servants working for the American people."

Dave Strom looks at Bluesky's Death Threat Problem.
at No comments:

Tuesday Tanlines

KSL TV, Camera found in tanning room of VASA gym, police investigating. I'm sure it's just there so customers can take selfies, right?

at No comments:

Monday, December 16, 2024

Flotsam and Jetsam - Late Monday DIY

 Late today. I have a good excuse, really.

The Incoming Trump Presidency

Sunday Talks - Incoming Nat Sec Advisor Michael Waltz Talks About Drones and Ukraine - The Last Refuge
Sunday Talks - Devin Nunes Discusses Kash at FBI and His Role Filtering Out Political Intelligence - The Last Refuge
President Trump Confirms Emissary Position - Ric Grenell, Presidential Envoy for Special Missions - The Last Refuge
Trump Appoints Longtime Foreign Policy Adviser Richard Grenell to Serve as Special Missions Envoy - Newsmax.com
RFK Jr.’s Food Fight: Can He Change America’s Diet? - The Epoch Times
A Word to the DOGE: ‘Reduction’ Is Not Synonymous With ‘Reform’ - American Greatness
Hilarious: DC Anti-DOGE Residents Find Out How Their Money Is Actually Being Spent – RedState
DOGE Hits Delete - Off The Press
Romney: Vance Will Be 2028 Nominee Because 'MAGA Is The Republican Party' - Off The Press
Althouse: "Pilloried by Democrats during his 2012 run, Romney has emerged as a strong voice for a bygone kind of politics."
Apple CEO Tim Cook Joins the Parade of Tech Titans Visiting Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago
GOP Sen. Murkowski says she's 'not attached to' GOP label, but is 'still a Republican' - Fox News
Trump Targets Birthright Citizenship, Tripping Immigration’s Third Rail
Military may be ground zero for the war on woke - thecentersquare.com
Instapundit - YOU GET MORE OF WHAT YOU REWARD AND LESS OF WHAT YOU PUNISH:
Trump Wants Postal Service Overhaul - Off The Press
RNC's Whatley announces plans to confound anti-incumbent midterm trends
Trumpism Is Going Global – HotAir
Self-deportation comes to Washington as bureaucrats abandon jobs ahead of Trump’s return | Just The News
ABC to Pay $15 Million to Trump Library to Settle Lawsuit | Newsmax.com
The Morning Briefing: Good Times — The Trump Train Runs Over George Stephanopoulos – PJ Media
How Much Voter Fraud In 2020? - Power Line
Schiff and Stephanopoulos Discuss How They Can Best Resist President Trump - The Last Refuge
Sen. Tuberville: 'Took Our Eye Off the Ball' in Key Senate Races - Newsmax.com
Mitt Romney Reflects on a Career of Lightly Held Stances - The Last Refuge
Althouse: "And and when I talk to people close to President-elect Trump and people who work for him, people on the outside — allies — they already see this as a resounding success."

The Outgoing Biden/Harris Administration

Joe Biden & Co. are doing as much damage to the US as they can before they leave
Biden Admin Takes Credit for Israeli Victories It Tried To Prevent
Althouse: "Some historians who follow the presidency say Biden has always shown flashes of anger when he feels underestimated."
DAVID MARCUS: Drone debacle perfect end to Biden’s 'You don’t need to know' presidency | Fox News
It Turns Out That Biden Never Considered the 'Specifics' of the 1500 Clemency Cases He Commuted – PJ Media
Bombshell Report Claims That Biden’s Education Department Spent $1 Billion on DEI
Biden’s Power-Mad EPA Boasts of Its First “Climate Change Arrest”
Why the Working Class Rejected Bidenomics - City Journal
Good Luck: Sen Schmiit Sends Letter to Austin Demanding an End to Border Wall Materials Sale – HotAir
WATCH: Chris Rock Sends Libs Searching for a Safe Space With 'SNL' Monologue Slamming Biden, Democrats – RedState
HA! Chris Rock's SNL Monologue BRUTALLY Honest About Biden and Democrats and Lefties Can't DEEEAL (Watch) – Twitchy
Kamala Harris for CA Governor? Here's What Her Close Aides Think
Senator Bernie Sanders Says Preemptive Pardons Should be Considered "Very Seriously" - The Last Refuge

J6 and the Deep State

Luigi Mangone Isn’t an Aggrieved UHC Customer in Pain, He’s Just a Nihilistic, Over-Privileged Killer - Shooting News Weekly
Kurt Schlichter on X: "Pardon every single J6 defendant. Apologized to them. Pay the millions to settle their civil rights claims. Fire every AUSA who has anything to do with this judicial abortion." / X
Did Andy McCabe or His Wife Affect DOJ Targeting of Parents?

Censorship and Freedom of Speech

Instapundit - LEFTIES: TWITTER SUCKS BECAUSE THERE’S NO MODERATION CONTROLLING VIOLENT NUTS. WE’RE GOING TO BLUE
Instapundit - THE GREAT AWOKENING WAS AN ARTIFACT: https://twitter.com/wesyang/status/1868026067568803981
Kyle Becker on X: "It's interesting that we continue to see the mental breakdown of the radical American left on a daily basis on our @X timelines and nobody in the establishment media has done a report on a need to do something about the surge in left-wing "hate speech." Despite the uptick in"

The Great Culture War

Gender Ideology Has Been Comprehensively Beaten: Three Cheers for Terfs – HotAir
Professor Blames Math’s ‘Rational Thought’ for Women’s STEM Struggles
Scott Jennings Calls Out Ridiculousness of 'My Truth' After Caitlin Clark Panders to Woke Mob
Campus Reform | Dartmouth implements policy of 'Institutional Restraint'
Black teacher who alleged pro-Trump harassment now sues school over racism - The College Fix
Instapundit - SO MUCH HATE AND BIGOTRY ON THE LEFT: https://twitter.com/KurtSchlichter/status/18681881989351385
at No comments:

The Monday Morning Stimulus

Medical XPress, Industry-funded study suggests coffee really is the fountain of youth, and if we can't trust them, who can we trust?

at 1 comment:

Sunday, December 15, 2024

Maryland, My Maryland

Sauron's Eye, Former Maryland Gov. Hogan calls for action from government after seeing drones above his home

Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan is calling on the federal government to take action after he shared a video of what he said were drones flying above his Anne Arundel County home.

It comes as mysterious drone sightings continue to baffle law enforcement and government officials in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Additional sightings have also been reported in Maryland.

On Friday, Hogan posted a video of the drones to social media, saying dozens of them appeared above his home in Davidsonville. The drones were active for about 45 minutes, Hogan said.
I just love the community note.

I suppose I could tell my drone story. One day I was out on with Pete in the boat fishing on the eastern shore somewhere. Now, a lot of Pete's clients are military or ex-military. He got a call from a friend who said, "I'm watching you guys". He was flying a very high military drone on a practice mission. He even sent us a cellphone picture, but said, "I can't send you the good one."

Yep, there are drones out there. In the DC area, I have absolutely no doubt they know the origin of every damn thing up in the air.
at No comments:

Random Celebrity News

 For some values of "random", "celebrity" and "news."   At the Pop Times, Hawk Tuah Girl Under Fire For Disastrous Meme Coin Launch There's a sucker born every minute.

A few months ago she became an overnight sensation for describing how to… uh… keep a man happy. Since that infamous interview, Ms. Welch has used her newfound fame to donate to charities (she loves animals), meet other famous people, and even start a podcast (Talk Tuah got as high as #5 on the top U.S. podcasts list.)

It’s perhaps the most famous someone has ever gotten from a viral video that’s barely worth a laugh – and she’s been milking it for all it’s worth. And you can hardly blame her – if people are still going to give her attention, why wouldn’t she? It’s doubtful that even she thought her fifteen minutes of fame would extend for months.

Her most recent endeavor, however, has landed her in some hot water. This week Welch launched a Hawk Tuah meme coin.
. . .
Just as quickly, $HAWK lost 95% of it’s value, losing investors millions of dollars, as Welch immediately dumped her coins on the market. This is also known as “rugpulling” (as in, pulling the rug out from investors).
From Breitbart, Giants Player Allegedly Paid OnlyFans Model to Flash Saints: ‘I Did My Part’
It’s unclear if this falls under the category of unsportsmanlike conduct, but what a Giants player allegedly did to distract the opposing team on Sunday is on another level.

OnlyFans model Ava Louise claims she was gifted free tickets to the Giants-Saints game at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, but only if she flashed the Saints to distract them.

The unnamed player requested that he remain unidentified to prevent being “fined” or “fired.”

Louise shared screenshots from her OnlyFane page, which reportedly show the text of a conversation between her and the unnamed Giants player. Louise captioned the post with a message, “Doing what I do for a living has its perks.”

Anonymous Giants player: “Hey sexy, got those 2 free tickets to the game if you do me a solid and flash the saints to distract them.”
. . .
Despite Louise’s efforts, the Saints were not effectively distracted. The Giants lost 14-11.

 Hollywood in Toto think it's Weird! Rachel Zegler’s ‘Y2K’ Tanks at Box Office

“Y2K’s” tepid pre-release forecast tapped out at $5 million. No such luck over the weekend, with the film earning just $2.1 million from 2,100 theaters. The far-Left Deadline noted how poorly the film performed, both for the spunky genre and its most notable star.

Genre has typically worked here in a niche form, but not this year as A24’s Rachel Zegler-led Y2K is blipping out with a $2.1M opening and a C- CinemaScore. While arthouse distribs like Neon and A24 have low thresholds for success, and this Kyle Mooney-directed horror comedy cost under $15M, $2M+ isn’t anything to brag about — if it gets there. And it’s certainly not good for Zegler.

Zegler, a rising star thanks to “West Side Story” and the “Hunger Games” prequel, cemented her “It” actress status by snagging the lead role in Disney’s “Snow White’ live-action film.

 

She proceeded to crush that goodwill with baffling statements that riled up audiences across the country. First, she slammed the “Snow White” source material, calling it “weird” and suggesting the new version would fix what was wrong with a movie that jump-started the Disney empire.
 
More recently, she savaged President-Elect Donald Trump’s voters, hoping they would “never know peace” following the mogul’s Election Day victory. The comments went viral, adding to her brand as a spoiled actress eager to insult potential movie goers.

She quickly backpedaled, apologizing for her cruel words. Did audiences reject “Y2K” in response?

From Da Signal,  2 More Celebrities Embrace Traditional Values

Two big-name celebrities did something radical last weekend: They embraced traditional values. Could these be signs that the tides are turning in the culture war? Is the public finally canceling cancel culture?

Pop singer Gwen Stefani announced on social media that she will partner with Hallow, the world’s No. 1 prayer app for Catholics, to lead an Advent prayer meditation. Other celebrities to narrate prayers on Hallow include actors Jonathan Roumie, Mark Wahlberg, and Patricia Heaton.

It turns out that Stefani, the No Doubt frontwoman, is a practicing Catholic who never missed a Sunday Mass while on tour with the band.

 

Also over the weekend, singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey, while presenting an award at Variety magazine’s eighth annual Hitmakers Event, had this to say about her values:

It’s super nerve-racking to hold on to an innocent perception of how things could go when you’re in an industry where maybe your values and your morals don’t quite match up with what’s going on. Especially when people think you probably don’t have any morals or values.

Del Rey, who has sported a signature Americana aesthetic since 2012, called new husband Jeremy Dufrene an “honest partner.”

at No comments:

Flotsam and Jetsam - ABC to Disgorge $16M Over Stuffinenvelopes' Defamation of Trump

ABC chose to settle a lawsuit from Donald Trump over George Stephanopoulos' repeated on air claim the Trump had been found liable for rape in the Whatsername case in New York, when in fact, he had only been found civilly liable for sexual assault. They chose to settle before discovery, which strongly suggests they were afraid of what ABC documents would reveal. The settlement is for $15 million in damages, to be donated to Trump's presidential foundation and museum, and $1 million in lawyers fees and an on air apology. Just 2 days ago, at WaEx, Trump to sit for deposition in lawsuit against ABC News anchor. Fox, George Stephanopoulos and ABC apologize to Trump, are forced to pay $15 million to settle defamation suit. "ABC News will pay $15 million as a charitable contribution to a Trump presidential foundation and museum." AP whines ABC agrees to give $15 million to Donald Trump’s presidential library to settle defamation lawsuit. Mary Chastain at LI, ABC, Stephanopoulos Must Apologize to Trump, Pay $15 Million to Settle Defamation Suit. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair says Wow: ABC Coughs Up $16M — And An Apology — to Settle Trump Defamation Suit. John Podhoretz @jpodhoretz, "So the fact that ABC News and George Stephanopoulos have agreed to pay Donald Trump $15 million for defamation with a false claim of rape is going to be a front-page, lead of the evening news story for the next 3 days, right? Stop laughing." At OTP, So Much Winning, "ABC Pays Trump $15M To Settle Suit." Sundance at CTH, ABC and George Stephanopoulos Agree to Apologize to President Trump and Fund $15 Million for Trump Presidential Library. Althouse, As long as I'm talking about apologies... "George Stephanopoulos and ABC apologize to Trump, are forced to pay $15 million to settle defamation suit/ABC News will pay $15 million as a charitable contribution to a Trump presidential foundation and museum".  Twitchy hears ABC News Employees Angry Trump Got $15 Million Payout but They Got Layoffs and Budget Cuts and MIC DROP: Megyn Kelly Dismantled George Stephanopoulos MONTHS Before ABC News' Trump Settlement. 

MORNING IN AMERICA
Shawn Fleetwood at Da Fed reports West Point Refuses To Say If Officials Who Spread False Info About Pete Hegseth’s Academy Record Will Be Punished. At NewsMax, Hegseth Flip Flops on Women in Combat, Gays in Military. Hell, draft 'em, give them their own regiment, and put 'em on the front lines in Ukraine. We'll see who's fooling who. Also, Deroy Murdock opines Decency Mandates Hegseth Have a Chance. What does decency have to do with politics? Breitbart, Report: Donald Trump to Meet with Pete Hegseth at Army-Navy Game. Also Tulsi, Penny, Kash Patel, more. Insty, NEXT MONTH SHOULD BE FUN: Report reveals that FBI spied on its likely new director, Kash Patel. "It’s going to be awkward at FBI headquarters next month when President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the bureau likely takes over." Althouse, "How GOP Senators Are Secretly Getting Ready to Surrender to Trump." "Headline at The New Republic. Article by Greg Sargent. Subheadline: "Trump wants to turn the FBI into something so draconian that the political press many not grasp it until it’s too late. And Republican senators are already giving themselves cover to go along with all of it. "Is it "surrender" if you're on his side?"  Charlotte Hazard at JTN reports Trump taps Devin Nunes to be Chairman of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, "Devin Nunes is a former California congressman, former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and currently is the CEO of Trump's media group TRUTH Social." Another in the string of people designed to rip the heart out of the deep state. Sundance has President Trump Reveals “Outside Govt – President’s Intelligence Advisory Board” Headed by Chairman Devin Nunes, worries about A Weaponized “Continuity of Government” and President Trump Highlights Ridiculous Nature of Drone Story and likes how International Longshoremen’s Association EVP Dennis Daggett Releases Statement Following Meeting With President Trump. 

ET has 6 Takeaways From Trump’s Time Magazine Interview. OTP, Some Dems See Common Ground With Trump On Border, DOGE. Stacy Matthews at LI, ‘We Look Like Idiots!’ Van Jones Continues His Post-Election Tear Against Democrats. Nick Arama at RedState calls it Pure Gold: Van Jones Drops Truth Bomb About Trump That Is Going to Drive Dems Crazy "Everybody keeps I mean, the problem is you have a framework in your mind that how can Donald Trump, how could Donald Trump?  Guys can we cut it out? Donald Trump is not an idiot. Donald Trump, let me just be very clear. Donald Trump is smarter than me, you, and all critics. You know how I know? Because he has the White House, the Senate, the House, the popular vote…" Speaking of crazy, from WokeSpy, Don Lemon Can’t Contain Anger Over Trump Winning Person of the Year. 

John Solomon at JTN hears Influential senators raise concerns feds not doing enough to protect Trump from Iran's threats. "Sens. Grassley, Johnson and Paul cite Just the News reporting on would-be assassin allowed into U.S. under Biden administration's “Significant Public Benefit Parole” program."


Capt. Ed, Resistance 2: Pouty Inauguration Boogaloo? Kurt Schlichter@KurtSchlichter, What they’re really doing is rejecting democracy. But we all knew that." Quote Jim VandeHei@JimVandeHei, "Trump inauguration set to face "substantial" boycott from Democrats, lawmakers tell ⁦@axios⁩ https://axios.com/2024/12/14/democrats-boycott-attending-trump-inauguration." Ward Clark at RedState, DC Restaurant Server States She'll Refuse to Serve Trump Officials - and Gets an Appropriate Comeuppance "A Washington, D.C.-area restaurant server has been fired after she spoke out about possibly refusing service to incoming Trump administration officials. . . . Suzannah Van Rooy is entitled to her opinion but not on her employer's dime. Her employer acted decisively. And correctly."

At Hat Hair Victor Joecks looks at Biden the Tyrant. Steve Richards at JTN examines how Lame duck Biden's clemency acts free an embezzler, corrupt officials, perverts, and fraudsters "Among the roughly 1,500 people granted clemency by the outgoing President Biden were several corrupt local officials, fraudsters, and a crooked judge. Biden also commuted the sentence of a Chinese spy convicted of possessing child pornography." It's where his sympathies lie. From TNP, J6 Committee Chairman Wants Biden Pardon. Of course, this is an admission of guilt.  At Da Caller, DNC Official Says Democrats Carry The ‘Stench Of Loser’ After Election Defeat. Hat Hair hears Dems Doubling Down on Denial Is Just Going to 'Condemn Us to the Wilderness   Ruy Teixeira looks at The Democrats’ Hispanic Voter Crash. "It’s not as bad as you think—it’s worse." Matt Vespa at TownHall hears Libs Still Think Kamala Will Win. Here's the Latest Conspiracy Theory. "The latest conspiracy theory is that JD Vance will “turn state’s evidence” against President-elect Donald J. Trump and Elon Musk for stealing the 2024 election:" Real Clear Wire, Tone-Deaf Lefties Miss the Point of Rising Consumer Spending  "Ways and Means Committee Democrats, in a now-deleted post on X, cynically responded to the record-holiday shopping news report with, “And here we were thinking y’all couldn’t afford eggs!” Once again, they expose how out of touch they are with Americans’ hardship." At Hat Hair John Stossel sees Your Tax Dollars Not at Work, but the grifters got theirs. 



Byron York at WaEx has questions, Now we know how many secret sources the FBI had on Jan. 6, but what did they do? They allegedly weren't ordered incite violence, but did some of them do it anyway? At Da Blaze, January 6 arrests rose 24% in 2024, 75% in past 2 years, DOJ report says. Rushing to do as much damage as they can. 

Althouse, "But what is lost in this lionization of one of the most notorious terrorists in American history is that for Mr. Kaczynski..." "... the desire to kill came first, and the ideological justifications followed . . .  From "What Do You Say to a Young Person Who Admires the Unabomber?" by Maxim Loskutoff, who wrote a novel about Ted Kaczynski, "Old King." WaEx, Obamacare is the missing word as Democrats rage against healthcare system. Obamacare was always their compromise, they wanted fully socialized healthcare. 

John Sexton at Hat Hair learns LA Times Owner Killed Another Editorial and Progressives are Worked Up. Dr. Pat Soon-Shiong@DrPatSoonShiong "Proud that we posted this letter from one of our readers on X. When the President has won the vote of the majority of Americans then ALL voices must be heard. Opinions are just that. I will work towards making our paper and media fair and balanced so that all voices are heard and we can respectfully exchange every American’s view ..from left to right to the center. Coming soon. A new Editorial Board. Trust in media is critical for a strong democracy." NewsAlert, Socialist Robert Reich on Election Night 2024 Warned Elon Musk : " I guarantee you I'm going to make life so difficult for you really so difficult for you so just be very careful of yourself "

Stacy McCain extolls the The Heroism of Amy Wax 
So I can’t tell you where I had the pleasure of meeting University of Pennsylvania Law Professor Amy Wax over a cup of coffee. She is a petite dynamo of a woman, full of energy, and photos don’t do her justice. Beyond that, I invoke my Miranda “right to remain silent.”
Professor Wax has no intention of remaining silent:

Amy Wax, the tenured law professor who was disciplined by the University of Pennsylvania for making controversial remarks about race and gender, told Penn on Thursday that she will sue the university for race discrimination if it does not drop the sanctions against her, according to a letter from Wax’s lawyers obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. It’s the latest salvo in a nearly three-year-long battle between Wax and the Ivy League school, which announced in September that it was suspending her at half-pay for one year.

Penn has until December 19 to “conclusively disavow” those penalties. “Should you fail to do so,” the letter states, “Professor Wax will file suit against the University.”

From the Telegraph, Gender ideology has been comprehensively beaten: three cheers for Terfs, "Wes Streeting’s decision to make the block on children receiving puberty blockers permanent is welcome." Beege Welborn at Hat Hair adds The MONSTERS in this country using, advocating, and profiting from this for children must be crushed legally, financially, and forever.

at No comments:

Sunday Sunrise

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

at 1 comment:

Saturday, December 14, 2024

Beach Report 12/14/24

I got a late start today and the sun was set by the time I got off the beach. It was in the upper 30a and blowing moderately from the NW.










The tide wasn't doing me any favors, and with the poor light despite the full moon, I only found 2 teeth.

at 1 comment:

Flotsam and Jetsam - ProPublica and West Point Try to Smear Hegseth and Fail

Dave Strom at Hat Hair has the story of how ProPublica Almost Succeeded in Smearing Pete Hegseth. 

Ace, "That's How Real Journalism Works:" Leaked Emails Show How ProPublica Tried to Manufacture a Smear Against Pete Hegseth. At ET, West Point Apologizes, Confirms It Accepted Trump Nominee Pete Hegseth to the Academy, "The academy had falsely said that Hegseth did not even apply to the school." ProPublica is a anti-conservative so called news outlet. The writer will probably get fired for missing. But West Point is a military outfit, and, first, they should not have commented on Hegseth's records without checking with him, and second, they shouldn't have quickly assented to ProPublica request, and then screw it up. If somebody didn't get fired quickly, I'm sure they will be once Hegseth is confirmed. At Da Signal, ‘No One Gets Away With That S**t’: Alums of Hegseth-led Veterans Group Dismantle Media Narrative. RCD, For Pete's Sake ... Enough! "This is the real message: The Administrative State is not pleased. The Pentagon is panicking. The Deep state has come to the conclusion that they are in deep sh…." Paul Kengor at Am Spec, Pete Hegseth, Rachel Levine, and the Promising Return to Normalcy. It’s refreshing to once again have political appointees with normal scandals. Virginia Kruta at Da Wire, Hegseth Spares No Feelings In Quip To Media: ‘I Don’t Feel The Need To Respond To CNN’.  At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.13.24, This Ain’t Hell, Pete Hegseth: Allowing Gays in military a part of Marxist agenda and The Federalist: Sen. Todd Young (R-IN) Invites A Primary Challenge By Refusing To Back Hegseth, How Team Trump Turned The RNC Into A Get-Out-The-Vote Machine, Leftist ProPublica’s Failed Hit Piece Just Made Pete Hegseth Defense Secretary and Power Line, A fair chance, ProPublica style.


 Althouse read WaPoo, Headline writers blithely omit "a" and "the," but there's a big difference between "the polio vaccine" and "a polio vaccine." "The Washington Post splashes this in our face: "RFK Jr. ally filed petition to revoke FDA approval for polio vaccine." I suspect that many readers experience alarm — Oh, no, it's crazy to take away the polio vaccine! — and read no further. But it's not the polio vaccine. It's a polio vaccine. From the text of the article:" It's the Sabin, live-virus vaccine. A child of the 50's, I remember the polio epidemics and scares, how people were relieved when a vaccine came out, but kids especially liked the Sabin vaccine, because it was given with a sugar cube instead of a shot. But, yes, we've known for a long time that the Sabin vaccine converts into full blown polio in rare cases. People have argued that, in fact, the Sabin vaccine is what is keeping polio alive in the wild. It may or may not be true, but it's not a silly argument. Da Fetched, Whoopi Goldberg: RFK Jr Is “Fat Shaming” Obese People by Promoting Healthy Diets.  At the TN Star, Tennessee U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn Introduces DOGE Acts to Cut Wasteful Government Spending. 


Driscoll at Insty, BURIED LEDE: KATIE COURIC ACTUALLY GOT A STORY RIGHT! ‘Smartest Thing They Ever Did:’ Katie Couric, Jessica Tarlov Admit GOP Leaders Sending Migrants North Was Game Changer (Da Caller). "The ghost of Saul Alinsky smiles: “Make opponents live up to their own book of rules. ‘You can kill them with this, for they can no more obey their own rules than the Christian church can live up to Christianity.’”"



At OTP, DC Restaurants Hate MAGA, Trump, Wait Staff To ‘Throw A Drink’ In Their Faces. Beege Welborn says Hey, Screechers - Leave Those Eats Alone! Nice one. Greg Price@greg_price11, "My favorite part of this story is when a liberal bartender was forced to admit that Republicans are cooler people than Democrats." Dave Strom at Hat Hair says About D@mn Time! when a Republican congresscritter proposes to revoke home rule for D.C. "Washington, D.C., is poorly run, an embarrassment to the country, and has proven its inability to responsibly govern itself."

COVER OF THE WEEK:
Capt. Ed hear Pennsylvania's Josh Shapiro: Why Did Biden Let Corrupt Judge Off the Hook?. Because "they" put the pardon in front of him. NYPo, Biden slammed for commuting sentence of notorious ‘Kids-for-Cash’ judge convicted of imprisoning juveniles for $2.1M kickbacks. Althouse, "Though Mr. Biden has the prerogative to confer broad immunity with what are sometimes called safe harbor or protective pardons, doing so now on a large scale would be difficult to achieve..." "... at least with any principled consistency.... [E]ven the broadest presidential pardon couldn’t fully protect someone Mr. Trump was determined to harass. . . . So writes the Washington Post Editorial Board, in "Biden should rule out preemptive pardons/Trump might target his enemies, but get-out-of-jail-free cards are unnecessary and imply guilt." Ace, Merrick Garland's Corrupt DOJ Makes Up New "Rule:" When January 6th Political Prisoners Accept Their Pardons from President Trump, That Counts as a Legal Admission of Being Insurrectionists. At PM,  Bennie Thompson would accept Biden's pardon after chairing J6 committee, "The president, it’s his prerogative. If he offers it, to me or other members of the committee, I think it — I would accept it, but it’s his choice," said Thompson.  PJM's Stephen Kruiser says Great — Biden Just Let All of Hunter's Friends Out of Jail. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.13.24, EBL, Biden Crime Family is Pounding out the Pardons!, American Greatness, The Real Criminal Here is Not Hunter Biden, Biden’s Pardon Is A Smokescreen for Corruption and Biden’s Paranoid Pardons and Leftist Morality. Nicholas Ballasy at JTN reports Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov pleads guilty to lying to agency about the Bidens. "Smirnov reportedly told the FBI handler in 2020 that Biden and his son accepted $5 million from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma several years prior. According to the court filing, the turned out to be false, "as the Defendant knew." NewsMax reports Trump Will Pardon 'Most' Jan. 6 Defendants During First Hour in WH.

Ace wakes up and notices Biden's Selling Off All the Materials Trump Bought for Building a Border Wall, to Prevent Trump From Building It "And he's selling tons of steel and concrete for pennies on the dollar. This will force Trump to re-buy all the material he already bought." Charlotte Hazard at JTN, Texas Lt Gov Patrick wants to buy construction materials auctioned by DHS, donate them to Trump, "Message to the White House right now: I will bid on all of that wall and we will buy it in Texas and we will give it to Donald Trump," Dan Patrick said." WokeSpy, New York Times Surprisingly Admits Joe Biden Is to Flame for “Largest Surge in Illegal Immigration in U.S. History” I assume they meant Blame. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.13.24, BattleSwarm, Biden: I’m Going To Force Taxpayers To Pay For Illegal Alien Healthcare. Federal Judge: Like Hell You Will. Dave Strom, Trump Goes After Climate Fanatics; UPDATE: Biden Says "Expect More Climate Funding" Before He Leaves. Richard A. Stern@RichAStern, "INFLATION IS BACK UP. Wonder why? The Fed has worked to quietly pump another $650 billion newly created dollars into the market over the last year. This artificially gave the economy a buzz before the election, but now comes the inflation hangover. As the money supply goes, so goes prices..." From WaEx, Biden gives economic farewell speech as voters say good riddance. WaEx, Jimmy Carter 2.0: Yet another Democratic presidency ends in disaster. At least Jimmy was fundamentally honest, misguided but honest. 



Campus Reform reports Socialist University of Pennsylvania prof apologizes for praising CEO-killer suspect, school condemns her post. At Spiked at explanation of Why the online left is simping for Luigi Mangione. "The celebration of the alleged assassin speaks to how morally and politically unmoored some ‘progressives’ have become." Mike LaChance at LI, hears Elizabeth Warren Triy to Walk Back Horrendous Comments on Murder of Healthcare CEO, “I should have been much clearer that there is never a justification for murder.” At Althouse, Peter Thiel talks to Piers Morgan about Daniel Penny and Luigi Mangione. "It's an interesting discussion, but many people are getting hung up on Thiel's very awkward, disfluent manner of speaking:"

John Sexton at Hat Hair, Bluesky: A Land of Unicorns, Rainbows and Death Threats and More Bluesky Blues: 'We Draw Battle Lines and F***ing Enforce Them'. TechCrunch, Bluesky at a crossroads as users petition to ban Jesse Singal over anti-trans views, harassment. Insty, SUCCESS: Elon Musk@elonmusk, "That is the goal. This platform only seems to”right-wing” to the left." Quote, Stat Shepherd@stat_sherpa "𝕏 stands out as the most politically balanced social media platform. Unlike many other platforms, 𝕏 has an almost equal split between Democrat (48%) and Republican (47%) news consumers. As you would expect, the data don't align with the "right-wing dominance" narrative."

At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 12.13.24, Don Surber explains Why I want Dems to rely on MSM. Keep fooling themselves. 

Herr Professor Jacobson at LI sees Fifty-One Discriminatory Scholarships At University of Rhode Island Challenged By Equal Protection Project, “We’re going to seek to make URI a test case for the Trump administration.” From the College Fix, ‘Totally unacceptable’: House Education committee criticizes Dept. of Ed. targeting of Christian colleges. From the Free Bacon, Amy Wax Threatens To Sue Penn for Race Discrimination, Breach of Contract, "The embattled law professor says she will take legal action if Penn doesn't lift the sanctions against her." Also, Ex-CCP Officials Funneled Millions to US Universities, Nonprofits To Promote Green Energy, Tax Forms Show, "Energy Foundation China, which operates primarily from Beijing, promotes energy policies designed to weaken US, watchdogs warn." Ace, New York Times: Is the "Awkward" Era of the "Diversity Blockbuster" Behind Us? "If even the Marxist New York Times is contemplating the end of DEI even in Hollywood, then the era of DEI must really be coming to an end." Christopher F. Rufo@realchrisrufo, "Now is the time for a blitz through the institutions. The Left is exhausted. BLM is shattered. Trans is imploding. Trump has a mandate to abolish DEI, defund left-wing racialism, and restore public authority over the public institutions. The counterrevolution starts now." But at Commentary, Christopher Rufo’s Dangerous Wishful Thinking.


Linked at The Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. 
at No comments: