Flotsam and Jetsam - Mike Johnson Squeaks by as Speaker, Merchan Sets Trump Sentencing Jan 10

Earlier in the day, Ace, The House Is Voting for Speaker; Johnson Looks Likely to Lose, "Chip Roy refused to vote for Johnson, Andy Biggs didn't vote, and Thomas Massie voted for Tom Emmer. Update: Another Republican has voted against Johnson, instead voting for Jim Jordan. I think that's it. I don't think we can lose four votes, and we lost them. Update: It's worse than that -- the Republican majority is so thin we can only lose one single Representative's vote." But then a legislative trick, as Henry Rogers at Da Caller reports Mike Johnson Wins Speakership After Late Flip By Republican Holdouts. "Republican Reps. Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar of Arizona, Michael Cloud of Texas, Andrew Clyde of Georgia, Andy Harris of Maryland and Chip Roy of Texas were all silent when first called on during the first ballot. After being called again, Roy said he would be voting for Johnson. Gosar also then voted for Johnson." Apparently some phone calls from Donald Trump were involved. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair reports Here We Go Again; UPDATE: First Ballot-ish Win. Matt Margolis at PJM, Mike Johnson Wins Reelection As House Speaker. Da Signal, In Shocking Turn of Events, Johnson Reelected House Speaker. At Reason, Mike Johnson Is Speaker of the House. Again. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.03.25 (Evening Edition), Dana Loesch: Mike Johnson Elected Speaker of the House. Althouse, "Congratulations to Speaker Mike Johnson for receiving an unprecedented Vote of Confidence in Congress." "Mike will be a Great Speaker, and our Country will be the beneficiary. The People of America have waited four years for Common Sense, Strength, and Leadership. They’ll get it now, and America will be greater than ever before!" Writes Trump on Truth Social. Did you get caught up in the anxiety about whether Mike would get the votes? I'm so resistant to that kind of thing at this point." No, but I'm a little surprised the holdouts folded so quickly. I'm just glad the 'Pubs got their shit together, in at least a minimal fashion. Mike Johnson may not be the Speaker you want, but he was the least divisive choice.

Meanwhile around Congress, Althouse catches Rep. Hakeem Jeffries saying we will fart hard  . . . for the freedom to vote, Why is it so hard to be adult? With things like this, we should act as if nothing happened. We all know that.

"We will fart hard--- fight hard for the freedom to vote" -Hakeem Jeffriespic.twitter.com/Yl3011Iflv

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) January 3, 2025

Insty, FOR ONCE, I BELIEVE HIM: Aw, c'mon Ann, who doesn't like a good fart joke? 

Hakeem Jeffries today: “Let’s beat our partisan swords into bipartisan plowshares.”

Also Hakeem Jeffries today: “Donald Trump is an illegitimate president.” https://t.co/9BENoqc45u

— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) January 3, 2025

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.03.25 (Evening Edition), Twitchy, Kamala Gaslights Child By Saying She Wasn’t Defeated In The Presidential Election. At WokeSpy, J.D. Vance Laughs As Kamala Harris Swears In New Senators. Althouse, who is trying to close 2024s post gap, I'm reading that J.D. Vance's reaction to Kamala Harris's swearing in of new Senators today has gone viral. "I don't understand why. It's an interesting situation, the defeated presidential candidate performing this role, but it is her duty as the current President of the Senate (i.e. Vice President), and J.D. Vance looks happy, but it's not as though he's taunting her . . . Some news media are calling attention to this other awkwardness: "Kamala Harris Heads to Capitol to Swear-In Senators Who Won’t Even Say Her Name Right" (Time), "Kamala Harris will give oath of office to GOP senators who couldn’t get her name right" (Independent)." In a less dramatic scene, Thune Officially Minted Senate Majority Leader, Promises to Keep Filibuster. The filibuster is an annoyance to those that temporarily hold the reins, and a godsend to those who don't. I generally support anything that slows down the legislative branch. I agree with Calvin Coolidge who reportedly said "It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones."

Hayden Ludwig at RCP thinks Trump’s Secret Weapon for Mass Deportations is E-Verify. Beege Welborn at Hat Hair is disgusted Honduras Rattling That 'No Deportar or We Boot Your Bases' Cage. Deportar, or no foreign aid. Maybe no foreign aid in any event. At CalMatters, Can California keep ICE away from schools? Lawmakers want to try as crackdowns loom. Hat Hair's Dave Strom thinks Europeans Still Don't Get How Different Trump's Administration Will Be. "European politicians at both the national level and at the European Union are hoping that the second Trump administration will be more "normal" than the first. Chances are that the norms of diplomacy will even less restrain it, which is good." At Culturecidal, John Hawkins address the question raised by Vivek in the H1B kerfuffle, Does American Culture Celebrate Mediocrity Over Excellence? It certainly doesn't overstress achievement.

If you can believe the news, it appears the CyberTruck explosion the the Las Vegas Trump Tower and the Bourbon Street Massacre using an electric truck, despite several coincidences which seen to suggest linkage, were two unrelated events. Matt Margolis at PJM says This Possible Motive for Vegas Cybertruck Explosion Changes Everything. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.03.25 (Morning Edition) Twitchy, Suspect In Vegas Cybertruck Bombing Was Happily Texting Ex-GF Days Before Explosion. ABC, Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion latest: Police look for clues in suspect's writings "Livelsberger shared personal and political "grievances" in the recovered messages and called the attack a "wake up call," police said. . . . Livelsberger, an active-duty Army soldier, said the country was being led by the "weak" and those out to "enrich themselves," while also claiming the incident was not meant as a terrorist attack, according to excerpts of the two letters shared by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. . . . Although this incident is more public and more sensational than usual, it ultimately appears to be a tragic case of suicide involving a heavily decorated combat veteran who was struggling with PTSD and other issues," Evans said." Althouse, "But Livelsberger, who was an active member of the Army’s elite Special Forces, was known to be a 'Rambo-type patriot' and staunch Trump supporter..." "... and law enforcement officers are investigating if he had purposefully picked a Cybertruck to limit civilian casualties, rather than for political reasons, the sources said. If he had used a normal vehicle, the explosion would have likely taken out the glass doors of the building and possibly the lobby — potentially killing innocent bystanders. The Cybertruck’s impenetrable steel design contained the explosion, while still giving off large flames...."From "Cybertruck bomber Matthew Livelsberger’s wife broke up with him days before explosion outside Trump hotel in Las Vegas: sources" (NY Post). Meanwhile in NLO, Ace notes that For Some Reason, the FBI Leaves Behind Evidence at the NOLA Terrorist's Apartment and Allows the Media to Conduct Tours. But they took almost everything they could carry at Mar-a-Lago. Bob Spencer at PJM, New Orleans Jihadi’s Mosque Tells Members to Refer Inquirers to Hamas-Linked CAIR. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.03.25 (Evening Edition), EBL: Rotherham: Never Forget, I do not CAIR about NOLA Terrorist’s Mosque’s Concerns.

With 16 days left in office, Joe Biden, or whoever pulls his strings, continues his plan to burn down the government as he goes. Matt Margolis, Biden Returns From Vacation With Unexplained Injuries, Slurred Speech "Newsmax reporter James Rosen called out Biden’s noticeably slurred speech and unexplained injuries, including a cut near his lip, a bruise on his chin, and a disfigured jawline." Nick Arama at RedState, Biden Returns From Vacation With Unexplained Injuries, Wild Remarks "Many also took issue with the jocularity of this part of the remarks right as he was finishing talking about the attacks, where Biden said, he had to get "this damn thing done" because the Sugar Bowl was going to kick off shortly. Then he smirked and sort of winked." Insty, WELL, BIDEN ISN’T BECAUSE HE CAN’T EVEN TEE UP HIS MORNING OATMEAL: "Is Biden Teeing Up an Iran War for Trump? But some unnamed guy with a White House lanyard may be." RCP, Legacy Media Not Only Covered Up President's Health but Never Asked Who "Ruled in Biden's Name" Hat Hair's Dave Strom sees that On His Way Out, IG for Afghanistan Drops Truth Bombs. At the Free Bacon, How the Biden Admin Allowed Iran To Rake in Illicit Oil Cash Amid Tehran's Terror Spree "US officials were briefed on Iran's oil smuggling scheme—and mostly ignored the intel." Bloomberg, Biden Blocks Nippon Steel’s $14.1 Billion Takeover of US Steel. Althouse, "It is my solemn responsibility as President to ensure that, now and long into the future, America has a strong domestically owned and operated steel industry..." ""... that can continue to power our national sources of strength at home and abroad; and it is a fulfillment of that responsibility to block foreign ownership of this vital American company. U.S. Steel will remain a proud American company – one that’s American-owned, American-operated, by American union steelworkers – the best in the world." From a "Statement" attributed to President Biden." Heh. Insty, WAS IT OVER WHEN NIPPON STEEL* BOMBED PEARL HARBOR?! "Of course, the deal could very well get a do-over, starting in a few weeks: To make America great, Trump can enable the Nippon Steel acquisition." Ken Moriyasu @kenmoriyasu, "Oops. White House copy-and-pastes from a previous presidential order on a Chinese real estate transaction and uses it for the Nippon Steel announcement. And forgets to delete the title." Jim Geraghty at NRO The Last-Minute Push from the Lamest of Lame Ducks "Now, we are 17 days away from the start of Donald Trump’s second term, and Biden — or more accurately, the team around our mumbling, stumbling octogenarian president — is trying to push through a difficult-to-rescind ban on new oil and gas drilling in large sections of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, enacted last-minute changes to the H-1B and H-2 visa programs to increase the number of foreign workers in the U.S., locked in hybrid work protections for tens of thousands of staffers at the Social Security Administration, set a new Paris Climate Agreement goal to reduce U.S. net emissions by 61-66 percent in 2035 (that one will be easier to rescind), and attempted to hinder efforts to increase U.S. exports of liquid natural gas. And of course, there’s been the pardon-palooza."

Benny Johnson@bennyjohnson "BREAKING: Judge has ordered Trump to appear for sentencing in the New York hush money case on Jan. 10, shortly before inauguration." John Sexton at Hat Hair, Trump's Sentencing on 34 Felony Counts Scheduled for Next Week. "However, the Judge Merchan also indicated that Trump won't be serving any time or even probation, but would instead be given an unconditional discharge." ET, Judge Sets Trump’s Sentencing for Jan. 10, Signals He Won’t Be Jailed. "New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan rejected President-elect Donald Trump’s bid to dismiss the case." Sundance at CTH, New York Judge Juan Merchan Orders President Trump to Appear for Sentencing January 10th. Althouse, "The judge, Juan M. Merchan, indicated that he favored a so-called unconditional discharge of Mr. Trump’s sentence..." ""... a rare and lenient alternative to jail or probation. He set a sentencing date of Jan. 10, and ordered Mr. Trump to appear either in person or virtually. An unconditional discharge would cement Mr. Trump’s status as a felon just weeks before his inauguration.... Unlike a conditional discharge, which allows defendants to walk free if they meet certain requirements, such as maintaining employment or paying restitution, an unconditional discharge would come without strings attached...." From "Judge Upholds Trump’s Conviction but Signals No Jail Time/The New York judge who oversaw President-elect Donald J. Trump’s hush-money trial scheduled his sentencing for Jan. 10. Mr. Trump is expected to appeal his conviction" (NYT). "Unconditional discharge" sounds super-light, which makes use of the verb "cement" — with all its connotations of heaviness — feel like taunting. What other "status" is "cemented"? It's demented." Matt Vespa, Law Professor Nails Why Judge Merchan Is Sentencing Trump on January 10. Jonathan Turley @JonathanTurley "...The sentence will finalize the case and allow for an appeal. However, it would also label the President-elect a convicted felon just before he is sworn into office. It is the final cathartic act for lawfare warriors..." From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.03.25 (Evening Edition), EBL, anti MAGA Merchan.

Brit Hume@brithume "This is repulsive. That investigation was done by a committee all of whose members were chosen by Nancy Pelosi, and was produced like a TV show. There was no cross examination of witnesses. The media fell for it, but it was utterly one-sided. A show trial." Quote CBS News@CBSNews "President Biden announced he is awarding the Presidential Citizens Medal to Rep. Bennie Thompson and former Rep. Liz Cheney, the two lawmakers who led the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol. https://cbsn.ws/4gW8yCN" The Victory Girls call it the J6 Kangaroo Sham: Liz Cheney Gets Presidential Participation Trophy. 'Becca Downs at TownHall hears Tyrus Has a Theory on Why Biden Is Giving Liz Cheney an Award "I feel like the award is for helping him get back at Kamala for being a part of the stab him in the back tour," with Timpf confirming Tyrus thinks "he's giving her an award because she did help Kamala lose?" From Twitchy, 'After Every Movie...': Greg Gutfeld Perfectly Captures the Vibe of Biden's Medal for Liz Cheney GregGutfeld@greggutfeld "imagine after every movie where the hero wins, there's a video following the credits featuring the villains and losers meeting to comfort themselves." At WaEx, Paul Bedard cites a Poll: FBI should investigate Jan. 6 charges against Liz Cheney. With a morning raid and shakedown. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.03.25 (Morning Edition) Twitchy, Ted Cruz Thinks Liz Cheney Deserves Something Other Than A Medal From Biden.

Sarah Anderson at PJM finds FBI: Largest Number of Pipe Bombs Ever Found (And You Won't Believe Where They Found Them). Some guy in Virginia seems to enjoy making them, but not using them, like some people tie flies. 

Ajit Pai@AjitPai "For a decade, I’ve argued that so-called “net neutrality” regulations are unlawful (not to mention pointless). Today, the Sixth Circuit held exactly that. You can read the court’s excellent opinion here: https://opn.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/25a0002p-06.pdf… It’s time for regulators and activists to give up on this tired non-issue once and for all and focus on what actually matters to American consumers—like improving Internet access and promoting online innovation." Insty has a Flashback: "Obama gave Netflix net neutrality. Netflix gives Obama a television show." At Discourse, John Mac Ghilionn explains Why We Need a Cyber Bill of Rights, but not the spelling of his last name. "In an era in which so much discourse happens in the digital arena, new protections of individual rights are needed." Insty calls it INCREDIBLE: Concerned Citizen@BGatesIsaPyscho, "Man Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Social Media Post The UK is the New North Korea." Flippy@sillyflippy, "In Russia last year, 400 people were arrested for things they said on social media. In Britain, that number was 3300..." VodkaPundit at Insty, YOU CAN GROK THIS: The biggest AI flops of 2024. "The vast majority of major AI image generators have guardrails—rules that dictate what AI models can and can’t do—to prevent users from creating violent, explicit, illegal, and otherwise harmful content. Sometimes these guardrails are just meant to make sure that no one makes blatant use of others’ intellectual property. But Grok, an assistant made by Elon Musk’s AI company, called xAI, ignores almost all of these principles in line with Musk’s rejection of what he calls “woke AI.” Whereas other image models will generally refuse to create images of celebrities, copyrighted material, violence, or terrorism—unless they’re tricked into ignoring these rules—Grok will happily generate images of Donald Trump firing a bazooka, or Mickey Mouse holding a bomb. While it draws the line at generating nude images, its refusal to play by the rules undermines other companies’ efforts to steer clear of creating problematic material. What it does is make Grok’s image generator much more useful and fun than the others I’ve tried."

Charlie Martin at Insty wonders TRUST, BUT VERIFY: How Do You Know What To Trust? UPDATE (FROM GLENN): Benny Johnson @bennyjohnson, "BREAKING: A Gallup poll shows just 31% of Americans trust the media to report “fully, accurately, and fairly.” At NewsBusters, CNN Shames Those Labeling New Orleans ISIS Attack As Terrorism. From WokeSpy, MSNBC Finally Acknowledges That Joe Biden Failed On The Border. Guy Benson at TownHall has a Flashback: That Other Time a Damning Photo of a Democrat Was Also Suppressed: Jim Geraghty @jimgeraghty "Put another way, Obama met with Farrakhan at a Congressional Black Caucus meeting in 2005, and not a single person in attendance leaked that information until now. 

Mike La Chance at LI, Students in Boston U. ‘Medieval Trans Studies’ Course Learn About ‘Gender Fluid Angels’. “Medieval studies resisted the woke turn in the humanities but eventually succumbed to it.” From Ace, Lawsuit: "Hulking" Transgender Inmate Sexually Assaulted His Female Cellmate, ""The thing that they say can never happen just happened again," commented J.K. Rowling. The NY Post:"

Dave Strom sees DEI Dying on the Vine in Florida. Miami Herald, ‘We’re in trouble’: Miami DEI leader says state policies left the industry in freefall. "Industry," heh. Driscoll at Insty, BARI WEISS ON AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD: How The Babylon Bee Predicted the Vibe Shift. "The Bee is a conservative, Christian satirical news site, which may sound like an oxymoron. It did to us. Until we read it and discovered it’s funny. Often really funny. While everyone else was busy criticizing and mocking the right, the Bee found success by filling a void. The Bee’s infamous tagline is “Fake News You Can Trust.” Here are a few recent headlines: “Biden Cancels Aid to Syria After Finding Out Some Needy Americans Live There” and “Canadian Dentist Now Offering Euthanasia as Alternative to Cavity Filling.”" Insty himself at his substack says Happy 2025 "The year when things come to a head."

Linked at the Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: New York, New York up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

Rule 5 Saturday - Yuliia Levchenko/Pam Bardot

This week's Rule 5 lovely is Ukrainian high jumper Yuliia Levchenko, sometimes known a the high jump Barbie

Yuliya Andriyivna Levchenko or Yuliia Andriivna Levchenko (Ukrainian: Юлія Андріївна Левченко; pronounced [ˈjulija ˈleu̯tʃenko]; born 28 November 1997 is a Ukrainian high jumper. She won the silver medal at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics. Indoors at European level, Levchenko claimed bronze in 2017 and silver in 2019. She was the 2017 European Under-23 champion.

Levchenko earned gold at the 2014 Youth Olympics and bronze at the 2016 World U20 Championships. She won five Ukrainian national titles.

Instagram

And then there's Lady Pam Bardot, whose Instagram also claims the name Pam Bardot: Fashion Model, (Yuliya Levchenko), Model & Actress / Highjumper / Female Athlete, and whose page is adorned with both modeling pictures and athletic pictures of Yuliia. The harder I look to determine if these are different women, the more confused I get. It's possible that the Pam Bardot is a rather elaborate AI hoax.

On the other hand, I could see a stunning athlete like her going into modeling. I don't think professional high jumping is a lucrative field in the long run.

Oh well. 

Linked at the Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. Linked at the Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break and FMJRA 2.0: Giant Killers up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Beach Report 1/3/25

A cool roughly 40 F, overcast day, with little wind. However, we had a blowout tide so we could walk as far up as we wanted.

Despite, the extremely low tide, it was a tough day to find shark's teeth. This 1 3/8 inch Snaggletooth lower was by far the best of 12 between the two of us, and earned a spot on the freshly cleared kitchen window sill for now.

And it's snowing now. 

Farming for Forever Chemicals?

Bay Journal, Study points to farmland as possible source of PFAS in fish

A mostly Pennsylvania-based study of smallmouth bass, a popular gamefish, found that the family of chemicals known PFAS — officially called per– and polyfluoroalkyl substances — do build up in parts of the fish. Those parts are not normally eaten, though, making them safe for the dinner plate.

But the examination of 380 adult smallmouth bass also found significant levels of PFAS in those collected from waters that flow through farmland.

Researchers had expected to find the chemicals near military bases, airports and in industrial and urban areas. And they did. But they did not expect to find significant contamination in undeveloped areas, especially agricultural areas.

Though researchers stress that follow-up research is necessary, they suspect PFAS are running off farm fields and into waterways from the use of pesticides and the application of biosolids from sewage treatment plants that are used as fertilizer.

The use of livestock manure as fertilizer may also be sending PFAS into creeks and rivers if the livestock are eating forage grown on contaminated soil, said Vicki Blazer, the USGS fishery biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey who led the study.

The buildup of PFAS in the environment, wildlife and humans is an increasing concern and relatively new discovery. Because the chemicals are resistant to grease, stains and water, they are widely used in such products as firefighting foams, nonstick cookware, cosmetics, and carpet and clothing treatments.

It's reassuring that PFAS don't accumulate to high concentrations in the parts of fish that are normally eaten. I suspect if that applies to Smallmouth Bass, it will prove to be rather general. 

On the other hand, it's not good news that PFAS are coming from a nonpoint source like farmland.

On the other, other hand, I'm still not convinced that PFAS in the environment present much of a health threat, I fear its just regulators reaching for new substances to regulate after having finished with older ones.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Flotsam and Jetsam - FBI Declares NOLA Attacker a Lone Wolf

As far as they know now. The original reports of 3 men and 1 women planting the IEDs have turned out to be bystanders, and what's his name, oh yeah, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, planted the IEDs and was carrying a detonator. Stacy McCain, on Terrorism on Bourbon Street. "When I woke up Wednesday morning and first heard about this incident, I did not immediately think “terrorism.”" At RedState, Jen O'Connell sees Biden and Trump Issue Statements on the NOLA Terrorist Attack, and Hoo Boy, What a Difference, "January 20 cannot come soon enough," and Nick Arama says Don't Worry, Folks! Biden Posts About Being on the Case of Attacks—but a Photo He Shared Is Concerning. Needs name cards to keep track of his cabinet. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, FBI: On Second Thought, New Orleans Terrorist Acted Alone. USAToday, New Orleans attacker planted explosives on Bourbon Street, Biden says. NewsMax, FBI: New Orleans Attacker Worked Alone, Las Vegas Blast Not Linked, despite many disturbing "coincidences." Dave Strom at Hat Hair says It's All One Fight. From Ace, Both the NOLA and Vegas Terrorists Served at the Same Army Base; FBI Claims "No Definitive Link." Kurt Schlichter @KurtSchlichter "Least shocking thing I’ve heard today," Quote Breanna Morello @BreannaMorello, "The New York Post was at the New Orleans ter*orist’s home before the FBI. Let that sink in…" Nick Arama again, Elon Helped Cops Track Vegas Explosion Suspect, Nails Media for How They Painted Incident. "Maybe they should be reporting on how Musk helped track this person down, including video from the charging stations to track the guy." All of the news that fits the narrative, and none of the news that doesn't. Matt Vespa at TownHall finds CNN's National Security Analyst Dropped an Interesting Take About the Tesla Cybertruck Bomber "And leave it to CNN to have a national security expert say that we don’t know if Livelsberger was anti-Trump or not." 'Bonchie' at RedState, NEW: Possible Motive in Cybertruck Explosion Revealed. "Before this report, all we had were smiling pictures of him and his wife, with the reasonable assumption being they were still together. But if she left him over infidelity, that would go a long way in providing a reason for him to be suicidal. It would also explain why someone with Livelsberger's expertise on weapons and explosives would stuff some fireworks and gas canisters in the back of a steel-bodied truck and call it a day. If you assume he was trying to kill other people, that seems like a pretty big mistake. If you make the counter-assumption that he wasn't trying to kill other people, though, then it all starts to make a lot more sense. Authorities are even looking into the idea that he chose a Cybertruck specifically because it would limit any collateral damage. Further, Livelsberger's uncle claims that despite his wife's reported anti-Trump feelings, Livelsberger himself was very supportive of the incoming president." The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee "Tesla Cybertruck Voted 'Worst Vehicle' By National Association Of Terrorist Car Bombers https://buff.ly/4j240wQ."

Guy Benson@guypbenson, "A jihadist just committed a lethal terrorist attack in one American city — and terrorism supporters are marching in another one, hours later." Ace, In Wake of Twin Terror Attacks, Hundreds of Muslims and Pro-Jihad Terrorists March for "Intifada" In New York City, "Why are we importing tens of thousands of foreign guerilla terrorists into the country?" Sister Toldja at RedState, Woke Influencer Accidentally Provides Exhibit A on How Not to Act on Social Media After Terrorist Attack. Joe Concha@JoeConchaTV "This utter clown celebrates terrorism and somehow gets more than 300,000 likes for the effort. Several people were injured. It could have been much worse. Ron sees it as a perfect time for a cheap laugh. Just a sick human being." Quote "Ron Filipkowski @RonFilipkowski, "A real photo and perfect metaphor heading into 2025." Beege Wellborn at Hat Hair, So, About Yesterday: Do Not Allow the Left to Do the Jihadi Two-Step." Althouse, "Love you always brother! You inspired me every day, now you get to be with me in every moment. I got this family, T, don’t worry." "Wrote Jack Bech, to his brother Martin “Tiger” Bech, 27, who played football for Princeton and died in the Bourbon Street massacre."

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.02.25, EBL, At least 10 killed after vehicle hits crowd of people in New Orleans, and ISIS Terrorist Shamsud Din Jabbar, Twitchy, NOLA Terrorist’s Mosque’s Response To Terror Attack Filled With Red Flags, and FBI Totally Did The Meme AGAIN, Vox Popoli, Magic Dirt Fail in New Orleans, Dana Loesch: Terror Attacks In New Orleans & Las Vegas To Start The New Year, Don Surber: New Year, same FBI-NYT lies.

At PJM VodkaPundit asks What Will You Miss the Least About Joe Biden?, Stephen Kruise says I Can't Wait for All of That Biden Decency and Dignity to Go Away, Matt Margolis notes All Is Not Well in the Biden White House and Cathy Salgado finds Expert Breaks Down Bidenomics ‘Incompetence’ or ‘Fraud.’ Embrace the healing power of "and." At WaEx Paul Bedard examines the Biden legacy: Most red tape ever and more in pipeline. Hat Hair's Dave Strom thinks the Biden Regime Has Nothing to Lose.

Matt Margolis thinks James Carville Destroyed His Reputation Cheerleading For Kamala Harris. What reputation? Insty cites KURT SCHLICHTER: How did my predictions for 2024 pan out? “I was doing pretty well until I got here: ‘Joe Biden is not going to be replaced, and he will be on the ballot in November. I’m not sure if he’ll know it, though. Man, picking Kamala Harris was the greatest insurance policy anybody ever took out.’ I further opined that ‘the Democrats will win in November.’ In my defense, I said that hoping ‘my track record of being wrong about my predictions holds up.’ It held up, thankfully.” Ruy Teixeira at The Liberal Patriot decries The Democrats’ Culture Denialism "They just don’t get it."

And Jimmy Carter is still dead. John Solomon at JTN, Sincere tributes aside, Jimmy Carter’s legacy still hampers a world Trump must fix "From Iran and the Panama Canal to the U.S. Education Department, America is still feeling the impact of a Carter presidency 44 years later." Matt Margolis, Yeah, Jimmy Carter's Post-Presidency Actions Were 'Borderline Treasonous' 

At Hat Hair, More, Please: Trump's New Year's Wish Is So Normal. Trump War Room @TrumpWarRoom "REPORTER: Have you got any New Year Resolutions for 2025? PRESIDENT TRUMP: I just want everybody to be happy, healthy, and well." NewsMax posts President-Elect Trump's 4 Big New Year's Resolutions "Bring peace to Ukraine and Russia . . . Securing the Border . . . Reviving the U.S. economy . . . Make America strong again." Paul Bedard has a poll, Most expect Trump to achieve top campaign promises. At AMAC, A New Dawn for American Justice. The Verge, US soldier arrested after allegedly posting hacked Trump and Harris call logs. Bipartisan mischief. 

Duane Patterson at Hat Hair not looking forward to Mike Johnson's High Noon Moment Tomorrow (today). C'mon Republicans, get your shit together. Sundance at CTH hosts Mike Johnson Discusses the Terrorist Attack in New Orleans as well as His Conversation with Donald Trump About Speaker Vote.  

A Driscoll post at Insty, CRISES BY DESIGN: "Pure Gold: MSNBC Sadly Admits How Bad Biden Was on Immigration, Trump Was Right. But they did run a segment on “Morning Joe” where they surprisingly did something I don’t think I’ve ever seen before: admit that Trump was right and illegal immigration did in fact shoot up under Biden. The funniest thing was how regretful host Joe Scarborough seemed about having to say it." Rich Lowry at NYPo, Forget Musk’s H1-B visa spat — merit immigration is the fight we need. At AMP America, Elon Musk Channels ‘Tropic Thunder’ in Defense of H-1B Visas. At TNP, REVEALED: Tesla Laid Off THOUSANDS of U.S. Workers, Replaced Them With H-1B Migrants.

From the Pop Times, Georgia AG Requests State Supreme Court Not to Reinstate DA Fani Willis in Trump’s Election Interference Case.

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.02.25, From Twitchy, Biden Proves J6 Committee WAS Totally Political AND Makes Liz Cheney Look Even WORSE in One Fell SWOOP. Also at the Pop Times, Biden Honors Two January 6 Committee Panelists Cheney and Thompson With the Second Highest Civilian Award. Sundance calls it Purposeful Antagonism – Biden Awards Liz Cheney the Presidential Citizens Award for Meritorious Bipartisanship and Exemplary Citizenship. "This is nothing more than purposeful antagonism and a stick in the eye on his way out the door. Team Joe Biden award former House Rep Liz Cheney with the Presidential Award for Outstanding Citizenship." Breitbart has a Report: Andrew McCabe Targeted Trump After Comey Firing, Using ‘Dossier’ Author. Is it really news?

The Redoubtable Julie Kelly at her substack, reports a House Report Discloses New Information on Unsolved J6 Pipe Bomber, "House Republicans reveal stonewalling, major security lapses, and misrepresentations by top law enforcement officials related to the still at-large J6 pipe bomber." Matt Vespa says FBI Decides to Punch Itself in the Face Again With This Update on the J6 Bomber "The latest from the FBI: this person is about five-foot-seven inches. That’s it. . . . It took five years to release the height of this person." At this point, I think we can assume the FBI either knows who did it, or was in on it, and it's up to them to prove me wrong. Althouse, "Who planted pipe bombs outside offices of the Democratic and Republican national committees in Washington on the eve of the attack on the Capitol?" ""Hoping to generate new tips from the public, the FBI is releasing more information about its pipe bomb investigation, including an estimate that the unidentified suspect is about 5 feet 7 inches tall. The bureau also is posting previously unreleased video of the suspect placing one of the bombs.... From "FBI releases new video of a suspect planting a pipe bomb near DNC offices on eve of the Capitol riot" (AP). ADDED: Why is the FBI releasing this now? I assume it's part of a defense against the incoming Trump Administration, a way to claim they're been working on this all along. Ridiculous news about the person's height and the shoes they wore 4 years ago!"

Stacy McCain, ‘There Was Never Any Evidence’: FBI Lied About White Supremacist Terrorism. "“According to the intelligence community,” said Biden in 2021, “terrorism from white supremacy is the most lethal threat to the homeland today. Not ISIS, not al Qaeda — white supremacists.” . . . Between 2012 and 2021, Islamic extremists committed five acts of domestic US terrorism that killed 77 people, whereas white supremacists committed four acts of domestic terrorism that killed 49 people." At Am Think Jack Cashill is thinking about The FBI's Oblivious Terror Agenda. "To understand the obscenely disproportionate time, effort, and expense wasted on pursuing the J6ers first multiply Lavrenz’s case by 1600 and then recall that the Kavanaugh rioters got off with $30-$50 fines. Now, keep this calculus in mind next time you learn of a lethal attack on American citizens."

Capt. Ed approves of the NY Post: Make the Media Pay for the Largest Cover-Up in US History. From Twitchy, We Did NOT Have Keith Olbermann Attacking Brian Stelter for Reporting the TRUTH on Our Bingo Card But .... Althouse is delighted when the "community notes" feature of X backfires on Elon Musk, The power of X community notes.

At Da Wire,  DOJ Spent Over $100 Million Pushing DEI, Restorative Justice In Classrooms, Report Finds 'It's appalling, although not surprising, that DOJ bureaucrats would prioritize DEI initiatives over student safety.' From Campus Reform, Ohio could pass comprehensive college DEI ban in 2025. Jacob Sullum at Reason is outraged when A University President Accused of Squandering Public Money Resigns in Exchange for a $2 Million Payout "Western New Mexico University's Board of Regents approved the severance package for Joseph Shepard after a state audit highlighted $364,000 in "wasteful" and "improper" spending." Cheaper to keep him. 

Althouse is bemused, This is not a bad right-wing comedy sketch. This is a scene in the movie "Emilia Pérez," which was honored with 10 Golden Globe nominations.

 

Some things are beyond parody.

A Driscoll post at Insty, BOB BARKER SAYS, REMEMBER TO HAVE YOUR COMEDIANS SPAYED AND NEUTERED! "Comedian Says It’s ‘Dangerous’ For Dave Chappelle To Joke About Trans People."

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Giant Killers up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Fish Pic Friday - The Life of Linda Lee

Imagine Taylor Swift had a twin sister with tattoos, a sense of humor, and a love of fishing, reptiles and amphibians.

Linda@lifeoflindalee: Dedicated to fishing, herping & finding all Mother Nature creatures through a camera lens.

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Baby It's Cold Outside

And getting colder. MDDNR, Marylanders Asked to Stay Alert For Cold-Stunned Aquatic Wildlife

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources asks those visiting the Chesapeake Bay or Atlantic coast to be vigilant of sea turtles who exhibit signs of cold-stunning, a condition that causes animals to become debilitated and experience hypothermia-like symptoms due to prolonged exposure to cold temperatures.

Cold-stunning typically occurs in late autumn and early winter when water temperatures begin to fall or when temperatures drop rapidly in a 24-hour period. Lethargic and unresponsive animals can be a danger to themselves and potentially to boaters. Cold-stunning can ultimately be lethal to certain species.

Stranding Network members respond to thousands of cold-stunned sea turtles along the Atlantic Coast annually. During the cold-stunning season, Stranding Response Program staff remain informed through weekly updates provided by NOAA. As of December 12, a total of 858 sea turtles have been reported nationwide, with most of them (more than 700 sea turtles) stranding in Massachusetts.

While this condition typically affects sea turtles, West Indian Manatees are also susceptible and have occasionally been reported in Maryland during winter. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Stranding Response Program responded to a deceased, cold-stunned manatee in late November 2016, which was found stranded at the Dundalk Marine Terminal.

Anyone who sees a lethargic, floating, debilitated, or deceased sea turtle or marine mammal in Maryland waters or stranded onshore should maintain a safe distance and call the Maryland Natural Resources Police Hotline at 800-628-9944. The hotline is maintained 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.

Marine mammals are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and sea turtles are protected under the Endangered Species Act. The harassment, feeding, or collection of these species or their parts can result in fines, imprisonment, and/or the seizure of vessels and personal property.

As noted, sea turtles aren't very common, but not exceptionally rare in the Bay. Most of them manage to get back to the warmer ocean as the weather cools. Most. Manatees are indeed rare, but a few intrepid individuals do wander up from Florida most years and the ones that do are mostly immature males, by definition, not particularly particularly brilliant. 

The long term forecast show our weather descending into a persistent cold spell, with temperatures near 0 F predicted. Turtles and Manatees beware. 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Flotsam and Jetsam - America Under Attack - Terror in New Orleans, Las Vegas

Terrorists decided to throw a going away party for the Biden?Harris administration, or was it a welcome to the party gift to the incoming Trump administration? In the early hours of New Years day, a American-born former Army Staff Sargent named Shamsud Din Jabbar, drove a rented truck with an ISIS flag into a crowd of people in the New Orleans French Quarter, got out of the truck loaded with explosives, and began shooting, whereupon he was swiftly killed by police. At least 15 people were killed, with many more in the hospital, some in critical condition. Around the same time, cameras picked up 3 men and one woman planting IEDs in the neighborhood, including one at St. Louis Cathedral. The Sugar Bowl, scheduled yesterday at a nearby stadium, was postponed until today so that more security could be imposed. The FBI reflexively reported that, despite the obvious ISIS connection, the attack was not terrorism, but then rapidly changed it's mind? and announced it was terrorism, and that it was looking for additional suspects. Later in the day, a Tesla Cyber Truck exploded in front of the front doors of the Trump Tower in Las Vegas, killing the driver, injuring some bystanders, totaling the truck, but not doing any serious damage to the hotel, probably because the Cyber Truck is so strong. Initially it was determined the truck was rented using the same app (Turo) as the one in NOLA, and subsequently the driver was identified as an Army vet who served at the same unit as the NOLA attacker, Matthew Livelsberger, a former Green Beret. Outgoing FBI Director Christopher Wray briefly stopped searching for J6ers, overly devout Catholics, and irate parents and  issued some platitudes about the fine special agents of the FBI  getting to the bottom of it all, and is scheduled give an unclassified briefing to Congress today. Even President? Biden took the stage to slur his way through a pre-written statement without taking any questions. Benny Johnson@bennyjohnson, "America is under Attack. This most important question in the country right now: How many hundreds of FBI counterterrorism agents were reassigned to ‘hunt’ peaceful January 6th protesters while terrorists poured into our country to organize and kill us. This is the REAL Crime."  Welcome to 2025!

PJM's Stephen Kruiser wants to know Can We Put a Rush Job on January 20? Leading Report @LeadingReport, "More FBI staff are allegedly threatening to resign if the Senate votes to confirm Kash Patel as FBI Director." Stop. I already want him! Gain of Fauci@DschlopesIsBack, "Let me get this straight... a white FBI Director (Chris Wray) gets fired and replaced by a brown minority Director (Kash Patel) and members of the FBI's DEI office are now protesting and threatening to resign? The irony is ALMOST too good to be true." Matt Margolis at PJM reminds us Tom Homan Puts Every Illegal Migrant on Notice. “The ones who pose the biggest threat to the country – they come first. The worst first,” Homan continued. “But let’s be clear, if you’re in the country illegally, you’re not off the table.” From Da Fetched, Border Patrol Union President Issues Warning to Democrats Planning to Defy Trump’s Deportation Plans. At the Pop Times, Liberals Exaggerated Cost of Deporting Illegal Immigrants Sevenfold – And Massively Underestimated Cost of Their Crimes. If so, it's the first time liberals overestimated the cost of a government program. NYPo reports Cops identify NJ woman as mystery straphanger torched to death in horrific NYC subway attack. 

Mike LaChance at LI notices WaPo Columnist Jennifer Rubin Insults Trump Voters, Attacks Her Own Paper for Trying to Reach Them, "there’s nothing that The Washington Post could possibly do that would have those people take out a subscription.” From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.01.24 (Afternoon Edition), Twitchy: Asparagus Fortune Teller Says Vegetable Told Her Trump Will Have “Health Scare” In The New Year and Donk Strategist Gets Bodied For Claiming Democrats Fix Economies Broken By Republicans.

White House Insists Jimmy Carter Is Still Sharp And Focused Behind Closed Doors https://t.co/SLkhhWPDLd pic.twitter.com/tZc2eWj1zb

— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) January 1, 2025

From No Pasaran! RIP Jimmy Carter, the American Chamberlain whose naïve foreign policy led Iran to became the world's biggest sponsor of terror. 

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.01.24 (Afternoon Edition), EBL, Democrats Lied About Biden’s Decline. NYPo ed board, Journos who joined gaslighting on Biden’s decline should never live it down. At Florida's Voice, Byron Donalds slams media, Biden advisors over ‘coverup’ of president’s cognitive decline. Jeff Blehar at NRO wonders Why Do We Accept Government by an Invalid? Matt Vespa at TownHall utters The One Name That Dems Should Remember Regarding Their 2024 Loss "When Special Counsel Robert Hur dropped his report on his investigation into Joe Biden’s mishandling of classified information, his annotations about Biden being a frail man with memory issues sent Democrats into a rage despite no charges being filed. Why so serious, Democrats?". Something I didn't realize, "Hur’s notes on Biden’s mental health were following department policy. He might disagree with his wording, but these investigators must include anything that could be problematic for the prosecution at trial. Joe, being viewed as an old frail man with a bad memory, might be sympathetic to a jury." Driscoll at Insty, on the VOYAGE OF THE DAMMED: Pete Buttigieg Comparing Biden Admin Accomplishments To Construction Of Hoover Dam Is A Massive Fail. Althouse finds "The idea that [Lloyd] Austin would even attempt to fob off a catastrophe like this with mumblings about his surprise amid ineffectual efforts to avert it is absurd." "Says the Editorial Board of the New York Post, in "Plea deal for KSM & other 9/11 terrorists is a final Biden ‘Screw you!’ to America.""

Mia Cathell at TownHall  thinks we should Thank Trump We Won't Have to Celebrate Kamala's Commie Holiday, Kwanza with a history of the holiday that includes ''People think it's African, but it's not,'' Karenga said of the long con. ''I wanted to give black people a holiday of their own, so I came up with Kwanzaa. I said it was African because, you know, black people in this country wouldn't celebrate it if they knew it was American. Also, I put it around Christmas because I knew that's when a lot of people would be partying," Karenga confessed."

Ace likes Comedian Whitney Cummings Roasts CNN and the Democrats Live "I've seen her on podcasts. I don't know what her politics are, but she did not seem to be part of the woke left and I think I saw her knocking feminists for their own toxic attacks on men." She's been seen here before. 

🚨 LMAO! Comedian Whitney Cummings is absolutely ROASTING Kamala Harris and CNN… while on CNN 🤣🔥

“Kamala was forced on us so hard you’d think she was patented by Pfizer!”

“I’m now playing like 3,000 seat theaters, which is about the viewership of CNN these days.”

She’s… pic.twitter.com/aZvnH6o5AQ

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) January 1, 2025

Victory Girls ask Don’t Let Democrats Or Media Get Away With Their Lies. Sundance wants to remind us  Elon Musk Gave DOJ the User Data of Every MAGA Account on Twitter, under subpoena. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.01.24 (Afternoon Edition), Vox Popoli calls  2024 The Year the Masks Came Off and Don Surber on Why NPR wanted that congressional pay raise.

Dave Strom at Hat Hair is Calling Pete Hegseth...

How much more convincing do we need to demonstrate that our military is not a trained and ready force for WAR?

Our U.S. Navy has “insufficient gender experts?”

I’ll tell you what, how about ensuring our ships don’t crash into each other at sea or not shooting our own damn… https://t.co/SNsUOkHOUC

— General Mike Flynn (@GenFlynn) December 30, 2024

Jesse Singal at Singal Minded reports Yale’s “Integrity Project” Is Spreading Misinformation About The Cass Review And Youth Gender Medicine: Part 3. "This was all really, really bad."

The Wombat has and FMJRA 2.0: Giant Killers up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Thursday Tune - Sweet Child of Mine

Greta Ray, not to be confused with Gretta Ray. I know, I'm still confused. They could be twins. Other than being born on different continents. 

About GRETA RAY Model & Singer
Singer - Actress - Model 04/23/99 Height: 1.76 Size: 38 Bust:80 Waist: 63 Hips: 89 Shoes: 38/39 Eyes: Ice Blue Hair: Brown (Blonde Dye)

Other names: Greta Giussani, Birth Name

Favorite quotes: Take charge of your life and make it a masterpiece.

YouTube, FB, X, Instagram, TikTok

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Flotsam and Jetsam - DIY News Years Day

 Not feeling it today:

The Incoming Trump Administration and Republican Follies

Tonight, we're gonna party like it's 2019! - Deroy Murdock
We Win; They Lose – According To Hoyt
In Praise Of Faithful Trump Supporters - Fight, Fight, Fight - Victory Girls Blog
Instapundit - SETH BARRETT TILLMAN RESPONDS to a rather absurd claim in The Hill that Congress should block Donald
HBCU Marching Band Gets Vicious Backlash for Wanting to Perform at Trump Inauguration – RedState
Greg Gutfeld: The Most Destructive Movement of the Last Ten Years Isn't Wokism – Twitchy
Stacey Abrams says Trump re-election was not a landslide
Trump Renews Calls for Congress to Extend Debt Ceiling Before He Assumes Office - The Epoch Times
President Trump Endorses Mike Johnson for Speaker - The Last Refuge
Speaker Lays Out 'Big Agenda Items' - Off The Press
Mike Johnson Says He Has The Votes To Remain House Speaker - Off The Press
Chip Roy Disagrees That Johnson's Vote Is Secure - Off The Press
Trump Says Dems ‘Will Try All Sorts Of Tricks’ To Delay Cabinet Confirmations - Off The Press
Instapundit - NEW TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY PROMISES TO BE MAJOR UPGRADE OVER PETE BUTTIGIEG:
Wide Awake Media on X: "Having been called a liar by Anthony Fauci for stating that "not one of the 72 vaccines mandated for children has ever been safety tested*", RFK Jr. sued Fauci. After a year of legal stalling, Fauci's lawyers finally admitted that RFK Jr. had been correct all along. "There's no https://t.co/0pLNe93yAh" / X
Instapundit - JEFFREY CARTER: If people want to immigrate to the United States, make them pay.
Ace of Spades HQ Despite Biden's Interference, Texas Completes 54 Miles of the Border Wall; Trump Prepares His Day One Executive Orders on Immigration
Donald Trump Officials Fire Warning Shots at Those ‘Messing Around’ with Americans’ Money
Kremlin 'Not Happy' With Trump Team's Proposals To End War With Ukraine - Off The Press
Trump Planning to Attend Jimmy Carter's Funeral - Newsmax.com
In The Mailbox: 12.31.24 : The Other McCain

The Outgoing Biden Administration and Democrat Follies

Who's in Charge? Ain't You?
Obama and Biden Just Achieved the Impossible – PJ Media
Ace of Spades HQ Biden's "Business" Associates in China Hack the US Treasury Department
Joe Biden Leaves Trump A Horrible Economy; You Should Still Be Optimistic – HotAir
The Ruby Mountains Gambit: Sabotaging America’s Energy Future for Political Games – Watts Up With That?
They stole billions in COVID-19 relief money, but the feds won't be allowed to prosecute them - Washington Times
Oh, Hi: Those 9-11 Masterminds and Biden's Deal to Save Them From Execution? Back On – HotAirThe Libs are Noticing Biden’s Broadband Scandal
Instapundit - IT WILL BE SO NICE IN THREE WEEKS WHEN THE SO-CALLED GROWN-UPS ARE NO LONGER IN CHARGE
Instapundit - IT’S TIME TO STOP THE WASTE: FEMA has announced they have signed a lease for a massive, 117,000 sq
Ace of Spades HQ The Corpse King Biden Moves to Unilaterally Ban Oil Leases in Nevada With Just Days Remaining In His Fake Presidency
Althouse: "In a bid to polish up Biden’s rusted image, The Washington Post on Sunday reported on the president’s private complaints that Garland should have been faster to prosecute Trump..."
Instapundit - ANNALS OF LEFTIST AUTOPHAGY: Jill Biden’s ‘frosty’ feud with Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff takes new
‘Embarrassingly Wrong’: Corporate Media’s Talking Heads Confess Their Biggest Blunders Of 2024 | The Daily Caller
Instapundit - I MISSED THIS, BECAUSE WHOSE IDEA OF NEW YEAR’S FUN IS IT TO WATCH CNN, BUT DAMN: https://twitter
Defense Secretary Loses Bid To Overturn Biden Administration’s Plea Deals With 9/11 Terrorists
The Left Goes Full Orwell to Rewrite Jimmy Carter’s Legacy – PJ Media
Instapundit - AND MORE FIRE AND BLOOD IN AFRICA: He just died so we’re supposed to pretend he’s a saint, but Car
Razor on X: "People attending the Jimmy Carter memorial must line up the first day by even license plate numbers, the second by odd." / X
The Babylon Bee on X: "Biden Finally Claims Title Of Worst Living President

Trump Troubles

Georgia AG Tears Fani Willis Apart
Georgia's Attorney General Takes on Fani Willis – PJ Media
Ace of Spades HQ - Jack Smith Drops Appeal to Reinstate Charges Against Trump's Codefendants in the Florida Classified Documents Persecution
2 Year Investigation by House Weaponization Committee Uncovers ‘Two-tiered System of Government’ - American Greatness

DC U.S Attorney Matthew Graves Resigns Effective January 16 - The Last Refuge

3 Justice Department Officials Leaked Info Day Ahead Of Election - Off The Press

Media and Censorship

Ace of Spades HQ 2024: The Greatest Year of Media/Government Disinformation
Ace of Spades HQ - The Obama-Biden Censorship Front Group "Global Engagement Center" Shuts Down Due to an End to Its Funding
Obama’s ‘Censorship’ Office Goes Bankrupt - RealClearPolitics
Legacy Media: Trump MUST Be Wrong – PJ Media
Byron Donalds slams media, Biden advisors over ‘coverup’ of president’s cognitive decline
'I'm Not a Liar, I'm Just Stupid': Read Matt Yglesias' Awful Excuse for Ignoring Biden's Cognitive Issues – Twitchy
CNN Anchor Panics Live on Air: Cancels Debate! Ask Larry Anything! – HotAir
BWahaha: Washington Post Top Political Reporters Flee for The Atlantic – HotAir

The Culture War

College official who told Trump voters 'go f*** yourself,' 'go jump off of a f***ing bridge' no longer at school - Blaze Media
Labour urged to drop 'western-centric' science in curriculum review
Ellen Page Still Looks Miserable After Succumbing to the Trans Cult – PJ Media
Instapundit - UH, NO: Naval War College: A Gender Studies N-Code for Everyone! Who doesn’t need a little Oberlin

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Giant Killers up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

The Counting of the Year Jar

 

A bit of an odd year. 4337 teeth, including sharks, dolphins and crocodiles and a couple of boar's tusks, which is a first (I think, we're really not sure what might be buried back in some past years) for an average of 11.8 teeth per day. We found only 1 Megalodon, and it was Georgia's tiny Hubble Meg (in front of the jar, left) and even the bigger teeth weren't really standouts. One arrowhead (front of the jar right). Total tooth weight was 2' 15 1/8 oz or 1332 grams, averaging a smaller than normal 0.31 g average. No really big outstanding bones, other than the whale ear bone (periotic) in the upper left.

The Wednesday Wetness

NJ.com, Smelly drinking water reported near Jersey Shore. Utility says not to be alarmed.

Drinking water in parts of Monmouth and Ocean counties has a foul odor and taste, but residents are being assured it is safe to drink.

New Jersey American Water said Monday its water supply in the area is being affected by seasonal algal activity, causing the disturbing smell and taste.

The company said it’s working to minimize the problem and the temporary algal effects on its water typically happen during colder months.

Not a problem with our local well water.  

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Happy New Year

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Smoke Break up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Maryland, My Maryland

The local digital rag, the BayNet announces Maryland Faces Massive Budget Deficit: Governor Moore Announces Executive Order To Increase Economic Growth

In an address at the Maryland Association of Counties on Dec. 12, 2024, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced that the state is facing a budget deficit of $2.7 billion for the upcoming 2025 fiscal year.

“We in this state face a historic budget crisis, the likes of one we have not seen in decades,” Moore said. “We inherited loaded budgets, sluggish growth, and a structural deficit. … From 2017 to 2022, the national economy grew by 11%. … Maryland’s economy grew by 3%.” He added that during that same time frame, Maryland’s spending budget increased by 70%.

This is by no means new information; financial analysts have predicted this budget deficit since 2017, and it has been the subject of significant debate in both chambers of the Maryland legislature for several years. However, no consensus has been reached on how to confront the looming budget deficit.

When you get down to it, there are only 2 ways to shrink a deficit. Increase revenues (by raising taxes somewhere), or by cutting spending.

Curiously, far from inheriting the deficit, the Governor inherited a surplus of $5 Billion from the previous Republican Governor, Larry Hogan. Just one of the reasons my criticism of Larry has been muted. He's not the best Republican, but he's the best Republican Maryland elected in a long time.

Oregon, My Oregon

At Da Blaze, College official who told Trump voters 'go f*** yourself,' 'go jump off of a f***ing bridge' no longer at school

A University of Oregon official who told voters of President-elect Donald Trump "go f*** yourself" and "go jump off of a f***ing bridge" is no longer at the college, KDRV-TV reported. As Blaze News previously reported, student newspaper the Daily Emerald said assistant director of fraternity and sorority life Leonard Serrato posted an Instagram story after Trump handily beat Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in November's presidential election.

The paper said Serrato told his followers — some of whom are Oregon students — "You can literally go f*** yourself if you voted for Donald Trump. If you are so sad about your groceries being expensive, get a better f***ing paying job. Do better in life. Get a f***ing education. Do something, 'cause you’re f***ing stupid." Before he made a sideways peace sign, the video rant ended with him saying, "And I hope you go jump off of a f***ing bridge."

A longer video of Serrato's rant begins with the following: "I'm done crying. My sadness is over. My anger has set in. I am a very petty person, and I am very proud of that. Love it about myself, actually. And so, I say this in the most disrespectful way possible: I don't care if you are my family. I don't care if you are my friend. I don't care if we've been friends our entire lives."

The Daily Emerald said Serrato soon made his Instagram account private and declined to comment to the paper. Soon after Serrato's video rant went viral, the university placed him on administrative leave.

and this interesting note,

The now-former official also is a hazing prevention speaker who reportedly did jail time over a fatal hazing incident at a fraternity in 2012.

Some one should look into UO's hiring practices.