Flotsam and Jetsam on a Snowy Sunday Morning

As predicted, a dusting of snow arrived late last night/early this morning. An almost totally useless amount, not even thick enough to scrape up for a snowball fight, although Gabi and Corwin might get in some runs on a plastic sled if they go out soon. Although the air temperature finally made it below 32 in the last hour, the ground is probably still warm enough to melt it soon except in deep shade, of which we have little now that the leaves are mostly out of the trees. The air temp is supposed to linger near 30 all day, then plunge to 20 overnight. 

So, today's new news is shootings. There was a mass shooting at Brown University in RI yesterday, leaving 2 dead and 9 wounded that dominated the news, without saying very much. Despite 800 cameras on the campus, only 1 was shown yesterday, a black clad suspect walking calmly away. A suspect has been detained, but no details released. In Australia, another mass shooting at a Jewish festival killed 11 and wounded many more. One of two shooters, detained at the scene by a bystander, was named Naveed Akram. And, from Ace, Two U.S. Soldiers Killed By ISIS Islamist In Syria, "2 US Army Soldiers, Civilian Interpreter Killed by ISIS Gunman in Syria." Sundance at CTH, President Trump Warns of “Very Serious Retaliation” Following ISIS Attack in Syria Killing Three Americans. Trump need to mow down ISIS again after the Biden regency allowed them to re-sprout.

From OilPrice.com, Shadow Fleet on Edge After U.S. Seizes Tanker in Venezuelan Waters. Good. Now seize 5 more. At WUWT, The Gulf of America Is Back "After years of market swings, regulatory uncertainty, and deep staffing cuts, America’s energy workforce is overdue for a stabilizing signal. December 10th provides exactly that: the first federal Gulf of America lease sale in nearly two years, offering long-awaited certainty for the companies and workers that power America’s offshore energy engine." At Breitbart, Buried Treasure: Miners Discover Massive Supply of Rare Earth Minerals in Utah. "The discovery, made while mining clay in Utah’s Silicon Ridge, includes high grades of 16 different rare earth minerals, ranging from lithium and alumina to germanium, rubidium, cesium, vanadium, and niobium." Curiously, none of the elements named are rare earths, the lanthanide series elements.

At Da Signal, the Great Victor Davis Hanson notes Europe Is Angry Trump Told It the Truth and wonders Will Western Civilization Still Exist in Europe in 100 Years? Chronic chronicles Europe’s Unending Tragedy. Stephen Moore at Hat Hair has ideas about How Trump Can Help Accelerate Argentina's Economic Comeback.

Morning Chicago News sees the Debate Over Killing the Filibuster Intensifies as Heather Higgins Warns Republicans Not to “Show Up to a Knife Fight With Boxing Gloves.” Show up with an RPG. At ET, Trump Suggests He Would Work With Democrats on Health Care. "The comment at the congressional ball on Thursday comes ahead of a deadline to end health care subsidies before the end of 2025" and Senate Rejects Dueling Health Care Bills Tackling Expiring Obamacare Subsidies. OK, we honored the bargain, and gave you a vote.

Sundance celebrates President Trump Attends Army-Navy Game with Thunderous Applause. From the Balmer Sun, Army-Navy Game: Trump, Moore visit sidelines but do not meet.

NYT reports the National Trust Sues to Block Trump’s White House Ballroom Construction. Hamilton Nolan at How Things Work says If He Builds It, Tear It Down on the ballroom, "As soon as Republicans leave the White House, the next president should tear it down. "It should not be torn down quietly. Its destruction should be a public event. It should be pledged on the campaign trail by Democratic candidates. The day after inauguration, there should be a fireworks show over the White House as wrecking balls and backhoes smash the white walls of the fascist hangar. Citizens should gather in Lafayette Square and the National Mall and cheer as the gaudy pillars of the insulting structure are imploded by demolition experts. Let barbecues and block parties spring up around the nation as Americans watch the event on live television. Let there be a celebratory concert in front of the pile of rubble. Let us create a historic moment of national catharsis. Let us nonviolently smash the Trump era into dust."  

Althouse still watches SNL, Did Trump say something about Karoline Leavitt's mouth? "I'm trying to understand the background to the satire in last night's "SNL" cold open: . . . Wow, he actually said, about Leavitt, "When she goes on television, Fox, like I mean, they dominate. They dominate when she gets up there with that beautiful face and those lips that don't stop — pop pop pop — like a little machine gun."" And, Help me think of a term to apply to articles like this, something that expresses why it bothers me so much. "It's not "fake news," because it's not even news . . . "

Matt Margolis at PJM thinks Joe Biden Is Getting a Brutal Lesson on How Irrelevant He Is. Nobody wants to donate to his presidential library. Washington Free Beacon @FreeBeacon, "Remember the Biden administration’s pentagram-sporting monkeypox czar? Or the mastermind of New York’s race-based COVID policies? Good news! They’re on Zohran Mamdani’s health advisory team. Dr. Demetre Daskalakis made national headlines during the monkeypox outbreak when he encouraged those most likely to transmit the disease—gay men—to keep engaging in “risky” and “joy-forward” behavior, and now he’s moving on up in the world." I&I identifies Who Made Life In The U.S. Unaffordable? "From their ancient habit of adding regulation onto regulation to their affinity for taxing everything that moves to their inflationary fiscal policies and deep affection for subsidies for their favored causes and grifters, Democrats make life unaffordable for those who aren’t connected to them. Naturally, they want to twist the truth, because the facts clearly show they are the offenders."

At WUWT, Save Okefenokee Swamp from UNESCO Control "In Episode 21 of Conservation Country, host ‪@GabriellaHoffman‬ investigates a Biden-era policy to designate Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site. She found locals overwhelmingly oppose this policy. They don’t want the United Nations in their backyard. The Trump administration withdrew from UNESCO in July 2025 effective December 31, 2025."

From Stacy McCain, Red States, Blue Cities: Minnesota, Somalia and ‘The Great Replacement’ "Red States, Blue Cities — that’s the fundamental reality of politics in America today, and it explains why Democrats have dug in their heels to prevent the deportation of illegal immigrants." Sundance hears Stephen Miller Predicts the $1+ Billion Somali Fraud in Minnesota “The Greatest Financial Fraud Scandal in American History” I suspect USAID was even bigger, but it wasn't really fraud, they were just abusing the system. From Fox, Omar accused by GOP opponent of opening up the door to massive Minneapolis fraud: 'Deep, deep ties' "Republican challenger John Nagel alleges that Omar has ties to individuals involved in fraud scandal."

From RVM, Zohran Mamdani Suggests NYPD May Arrest ICE Agents Instead of Illegal Aliens. FAFO. Across da Pond at De Telegraph, New York is becoming the next London, home only to immigrants and the super-rich. "The irony of Mamdani’s election is that he is likely to accelerate the middle class exodus, ending the city as an engine of social mobility."

Breitbart notices Jack Smith Partners with Trump Lawfare Thugs to Form a Law Firm. WUWT documents how America’s Energy Independence Threatened By “Dark Money” Lawfare.

TownHall's Dmitri Bolt notes Democrats Demand Due Process for Narco-Traffickers—but Mock the Murder of Charlie Kirk. Jason Cohen @JasonJournoDC "ANDREW SCHULZ: "It's just funny to me that there are people that were happy Charlie Kirk got shot because they disagreed on opinions, and they're fighting for due process for people who are driving fentanyl into the f*cking country.""

From LifeZette, Kilmar Abrego Garcia Will Be Deported Again says Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino, Minneapolis Police Chief Threatens to Fire Officers Who Don’t Confront ICE During Arrests and Homeland Security Hearing Goes Sideways, Terrifying Terrorist Data Revealed Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, " HOLY CRAP! NCTC Director Joe Kent reveals JAW-DROPPING amount of terrorists let into America “18,000 known and suspected terrorists the Biden administration let come into our country." There’s no other way to put it. Treason." RVM sees Democrat’s Veteran Gotcha Collapses as DHS Exposes Full Criminal Record. At ET, ICE Arrests 2,824, Deports 11,870 in New Orleans in November "DHS said it had arrested more than 250 criminal illegal immigrants in New Orleans as part of Operation Catahoula Crunch." The Big Uneasy. Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes, "This data is mind blowing “Non-citizens Social Security numbers issued during the Biden Administration 2021: 270,425 2022: 590,193 2023: 964,163 2024: 2,095,247 - The Biden administration gave more non-citizens Social Security cards in 4 years than live in the state of Iowa - If we just took the amount of people they gave those to in 2024. That's more people than live in Nebraska, Idaho, West Virginia, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Maine, Montana, Rhode Island, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, DC, Vermont and Wyoming It would be the 39th largest state in the union. Just the amount of people, non-Americans, they gave Social Security cards to last year.” “Gee, I wonder why that escalated so much in 24. Because what are you probably more likely to legitimately be able to claim if you've got a social security card, citizenship voting. Mm-huh.”"

At the Other McCain, the Wombat bids A Warm Welcome To Our Chinese Affiliates "I have been in contact recently with a gentleman named Liu, who advises me that some business or people in West Taiwan wish to purchase various theothermccain.com.cn URL. Now, there is a strong possibility that this is some kind of scam intended to get Stacy and I to shell out hundreds of bucks to buy these URL ourselves, but on the off chance this is actually a legit heads-up, I would like to welcome our new West Taiwan affiliates and warn them that the Ministry of State Security* may take a dim view of their association with our blog. As you loyal members of the Commentariat are well aware, the policy of this blog has long been that the best place for Communists is in free fall from a helicopter. We are also firm believers in Taiwanese independence, and support reasonable military and commercial steps to discomfit the vile betrayers of the Three People’s Principles currently bedeviling the good people of West Taiwan."

From Twitchy, David Frum Explains Why DOJ's Use of 'Franklin' Parody Is a Form of Transnational Organized Crime. Washington Free Beacon @FreeBeacon, "@AndrewStilesUSA writes: The New York Times published a profile of Jennifer Welch, the “radical wine mom” podcaster who has become—for reasons that defy conventional explanation—one of the most influential figures in the Democratic Party. Basically she thinks Democrats are a bunch of p—ies who don’t fight hard enough and aren’t passionate enough about the issues that matter, such as Trump’s “cankles.” Every serious presidential contender will have to go on her show in 2028 and face her wrath. Have fun, everyone!" Dave Strom at Hat Hair finds out Ugh! Oliver Sacks Was a Fraud, "It turns out that all his works were some variety of autobiography, in which he described aspects of his own personality, quirks, loves, hates, torments, and flights of fancy through the false biographies of his patients."

From Campus Reform, MSU Denver Writing Center calls ‘Standard American English’ a tool of white supremacy. To be a serious academic you have to assert something antithetical to common sense at least twice a day.

Harrison Lowman @harrisonlowman "For the love of god why would you make this a light hearted comedy. Then they went and reversed the message to make it anti-capitalism rather than anti-communism. Orwell is spinning in his grave." Quote DiscussingFilm @DiscussingFilm, "First trailer for Andy Serkis’ animated adaptation of ‘ANIMAL FARM’ Starring Seth Rogen, Gaten Matarazzo, Steve Buscemi, Glenn Close, Laverne Cox, Kieran Culkin, Woody Harrelson, Jim Parsons, Kathleen Turner and Iman Vellani."

At Twitchy, Childless Strategist Bitecofer Declares Kids Ruin Lives – X Users Clap Back Hard. We Used to Be a Proper Country @Mzandthropic, "This should instantly disqualify someone for social security as they aren't breeding the next contributors" Quote Rachel Bitecofer @RachelBitecofer, "I can 100% confirm that having kids kills your lifestyle unless your lifestyle is staying home on Friday nights cleaning up poo and vomit. For 3 years."