Friday, August 7, 2026
Thursday, August 6, 2026
Flotsam and Jetsam - Abdulrahman Mohammed El-Sayed Wins Michigan Democrat Senate Primary
Swann Marcus@SwannMarcus89, "HOLY SHIT WHAT Mamdani's "socialist" grocery stores are going to be run by private operators? And they receive the right to run the store from the government but then control the supply of discount cards themselves? And they have full discretion over purchasing and hiring decisions in a situation where they are guaranteed to make a profit irrespective of how inefficient the operation is because they're undercutting their competitors' prices by 30% via government subsidies? Buckle in, you suck fucks! Real corruption has never been tried!" At State of the Day, YOU NEED ID FOR THIS SOCIALIST UTOPIA, "Do these people hear themselves?" From Twitchy, OUCH! Zohran Mamdani's Anti-Police Rhetoric Came Back to Bite Him at an NYPD Event. Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, "LMFAO! Ugandan Mayor Mamdani tried to deliver a speech at a New York Police event in Manhattan but was VICIOUSLY booed and jeered off stage He walked off in SHAME. Patriots want Mamdani to go BACK to his country!" Fox cites MARK PENN: Socialist Mamdani sold a tax on billionaires. Regular homeowners could pay the price, "Gotta love whoever pulled this French name into implying New York City's pied-à-terre tax would fall on just a few very rich people." That's the point.
James Lindsay, anti-Communist @ConceptualJames, We can now be quite certain that, yes, in fact, the DSA move within the Democratic Party is a power consolidation move modeled after the Bolshevik takeover of the Social Democrat Party and expulsion of the Mensheviks. Not the revolution itself but its immediate political precursor." Quote New York Magazine @NYMag, "The GOP’s big red scare is really stupid. Democrats aren’t communist, and the relatively small progressive surge in this year’s primaries isn’t a Bolshevik Revolution, writes Ed Kilgore." The Drunk Republican @DrunkRepub, "Now that the Democrat Party has been officially commandeered by Communists, the “America First” folks who claim they’ll stay home in November are in a real pickle. Because no one claiming to be America First would willingly turn over their county to the cretins in the DSA. As Donald Trump himself famously opined, "You can be a communist or you can be a patriot. You cannot be both.”" Matt Vespa at TownHall sees Mike Rowe Triggered a Ton of People With His Lengthy Post About Socialism. John Sexton, California Democratic Party Backs the Wealth Tax. Geiger Capital @Geiger_Capital, "If the California billionaire wealth tax passes, it will be a nationwide policy for 2028. Every Democrat on the primary stage will raise their hand to support it federally. Tech guys think they can just run to Texas now after funding the far-left for years." Quote Geiger Capital @Geiger_Capital, "There it is… California's Democratic Party has voted to endorse the billionaire wealth tax on the ballot." PJM's Stephen Kruiser writes Of Commies, Purple States, and the Elusive Undecided Voter. "Yes, my friends, the fate of the Republic hinges on people who haven't caught on to the fact that the Democrats keep talking about shredding the Constitution. It's realizations like that which make it harder for me to stay detached, but my years of "all dead inside" practice serve me well." InfantryDort @infantrydort, "Our ancestors fought some of the most fearsome enemies in the war against entropy. Worthy of mighty song and story. We get communist jihadi welfare tourists with weaponized EBT cards and TikTok. Unlucky." PoIiMath @politicalmath, "Academic: I think the gullible young people I can manipulate should have more power and the skeptical parents who can see through my bullshit should have less power." Quote Caleb Wait @calebwait, "I try to keep an open mind about new ideas and opinions, but this take on parents and children is the dumbest thing I’ve heard in a long time. Douthat’s response is perfect."
At Twitchy, Amy Klobuchar Gets Absolutely Booed Off Stage for Border & Cop Lies — Then Calls to Defund ICE.
At Twitchy, Amy Klobuchar Gets Absolutely Booed Off Stage for Border & Cop Lies — Then Calls to Defund ICE.
At NYPo, NY police bigwig, husband helped goon son plan gangland shooting — and mom was getaway driver: sources. Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok, "WILD Mount Vernon, NY Deputy Police Commissioner Jennifer Lackard ARRESTED for allegedly being the GETAWAY DRIVER for her gang member son after a shooting."
Chris Rufo on the The Typhus Rats of Los Angeles, "A medieval disease is rocking the vermin-ridden county." The palm trees in my parent's Ranch Park house had rats. Before we were married, Georgia stayed with us a while, and the cat brought one home for her.
I&I wonders/fears Is Trump’s Flat Voter Favorability In August Bad News For GOP’s Midterm Hopes? Mark Tapscott at Insty says POLITICAL APPOINTEES SHOULD KILL BAD GRANTS: "Democrats in Congress are up in arms over President Donald Trump’s proposal to give executive branch senior political appointees authority to pre-screen proposed federal grants and to terminate previously approved and continuing funding streams. In fact under the Constitution, as I write today in The Washington Stand, the President can delegate authority to carry out the his policies that voters endorsed when they elected him to trusted senior political appointees. Democrats are angry because Trump is implementing a counter to the power of the unelected career bureaucrats who routinely dispatch hundreds of billions of tax dollars to far-Left groups." At Politico, Congress ended surprise medical bills — doctors and insurers hate it “This must end,” President Donald Trump said when he signed the bill into law. “We’re going to hold insurance companies and hospitals totally accountable.”
PJM's Scott Pinsker asserts Max Miller Destroys His Career in Disastrous, Shambolic CNN Interview.
John Sexton worries Did Russia Just Try to Extend the War With Ukraine Into Germany? Sundance at CTH calls it an Odd Story – Explosive Drones Discovered at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany.
Capt Ed cites Int'l Media: New MOU an IRGC 'Deal on the Sly' with Oman?. If it's Iranian, and it floats, flies or drives, blow it up.
Dave Strom at Hat Hair hears FBI Opened Criminal Investigation of Trump for Firing Comey. PJM's Matt Margolis, Bombshell Declassified FBI Document Blows Up Everything We Ever Heard About Russiagate. Sundance, Govt Releases Originating Info Behind FBI Investigation “Oxferd Comma” That Followed Comey Firing "John Solomon, working for the administration on behalf of President Trump, has released internal FBI information that surrounded an investigation of President Trump and other officials following the firing of James Comey. {DOCUMENTS HERE}" Ace, Revealed Documents: Corrupt FBI Operatives Opened Investigation of Trump as a RUSSIAN AGENT Because He Fired Their Ringleader James Comey. John Solomon at JTN, FBI Follies: Bureau secretly probed Trump as a Russian asset for firing Comey: declassified memos. "Documents declassified by the White House Government Transparency Task Force show the investigation – codenamed "Oxferd Comma" – was launched in the immediate aftermath of Comey’s May 9, 2017 firing and was predicated on allegations that the bureau’s own agents had mostly dismissed by that time."
Ace, Did the Democrat-Media Party Program Another Assassin to Kill Trump? "Not sure yet. But it seems like they did." Sundance, 4th Assassination Attempt Likely – Armed Gunman, Jeanine John Taele (38) Arrested in California.
T. Anderson says And another thing ... on The Failure of Fauci and His Fans. "Turns out you can get him to shut up after all." Teri Christoph at RedState, Uh-Oh: Fauci's Worst Nightmare May Have Just Landed in the Hands of Senate Republicans. The Wall Street Journal @WSJ, "Exclusive: A Senate panel has obtained a copy of Dr. Anthony Fauci's Covid-era iPhone, potentially securing more records related to his actions during the pandemic." Cathy Salgado at PJM reports Bill Gates Was Embedded in U.S. Agencies During COVID Era "Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) released more information this week revealing that Gates had a “Q” security clearance for seven years at DOE and had then-NIAID Director Anthony Fauci as his private editor during the COVID lockdown era. The Gates Foundation was even funding NIH. Then again, Gates also reportedly donated a staggering $50 million to Kamala Harris. I guess he paid a pretty high price for the privilege of being involved in so much government decision-making."
Beege Welborn notices The Recent Moroccan Invasion in Ceuta Has Spurred a Panicky Response Elsewhere in Europe. New York Post @nypost, "African Migrants in Ceuta Complain About Treatment: 'No Food, No Blankets'" Matt Van Swol @mattvanswol, "#BREAKING: The Red Cross is now handing out FREE FOOD to to THOUSANDS of Moroccan Muslim invaders who illegally entered the Spanish city of Ceuta. WHAT?!!!!!!!"
At Da Caller, GOP Sen. John Curtis Unveils State-Run Visa Scheme Offering Amnesty To Illegals. Camron Arcand at TownHall notes Weekend ICE Arrests Include Convicted Murderer, Robber.
Show of hands how many of you knew Stephen Colbert's daughter worked for 60 minutes and CBS News? https://t.co/u61x0BRDXo
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) August 5, 2026
And more at the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 08.03.26.
Tattoo Thursday
At Secret Seattle, Think you have Seattle’s worst tattoo? There’s a contest for that at this month’s Seattle Tattoo Expo. I really want to see the winners.
Wednesday, August 5, 2026
Flotsam and Jetsam - More Fun with Fauci
I'm hoping the Fauci story, or at least this episode of it, has just about run its course. Stacy McCain expounds on Lies, Damned Lies, and COVID-19 and makes a point I've been thinking about. "In case you’ve forgotten, the original rationale of the first COVID-19 lockdown was that the virus was spreading so rapidly that hospitals would soon be overwhelmed with victims, that there would be a shortage of medicine, equipment and personnel to treat patients. This was what “15 Days to Slow the Spread” was about and, when that ended, it was “Six Weeks to Flatten the Curve” — in other words, a total of two months of lockdown, to prevent the medical system from collapsing under the burden of the pandemic. In other words, by mid-May 2020, it would be safe to let life return to normal, but OH DEAR GOD WE CAN’T LET THAT HAPPEN, Democrats and the media collectively screamed, once the initial two months of COVID-19 lockdown were over." It was never about stopping the virus, it was about slowing it to prevent overwhelming the system, and protecting the vulnerable (mostly us old farts) until a vaccine, and or treatments were found while the virus ran it's course. The vaccines never really worked well, and it turns out there were good treatments that did which were suppressed in favor of the vaccines that didn't. The virus cooperated by evolving into a common cold. Roger Kimball at Am Great discusses The Rise and Fall of Anthony Fauci "Being pathetic is no protection against being malevolent." PJM's Matt Margolis sees Rand Paul Makes His Move Against Fauci: "Paul introduced a resolution Tuesday to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress." Christine Dolan at the World Trib thinks it's Time for Covid prosecutions and nothing less. Michael Shellenberger @shellenberger, "Journalists are aggressively defending Fauci, despite his diaries showing that he repeatedly lied to the public. The reason is that, after years of dehumanizing Covid dissidents based on his lies, media elites can’t cope with the enormity of their failure. By @GalexyBrane." Western Lensman @WesternLensman, "The strategy CNN management chose was silence. Just say nothing, and hope the controversy fades away. It's been almost 10 days since Fauci diary entries revealed that two of CNN's top anchors were private ... This is CNN." Cynical Publius @CynicalPublius, "This is brilliant: “The Constitution was not written as a suggestion for calm weather. It was written to restrain power precisely when fear is highest and the people in charge are most certain they know better.” Quote Flopping Aces @FloppingAces "RFK Jr. sat on CNN and said something that should not have been controversial. He said the government’s first duty in any future pandemic is to protect constitutional rights. Not balance them against expert opinion. Not temporarily suspend them. Protect them."
At Am Spec Dave Catron explains his reasoning on Why Republicans May Defy Midterm History. "The GOP enjoys advantages in 2026 that the party in power doesn’t usually possess." I would just add that the old rules don't work very well when Trump is involved. From Forth, U.S. Manufacturing Surges to Four‑Year High as Trump Administration Drives Investment Boom. Am 1st News, BREAKING: JD Vance Announces Task Force Has Uncovered $230 Billion in… fraud, but WaPoo is obsessing over his backyard chicken coop, Luke Rosiak @lukerosiak, "The vice president started raising chickens, so the Washington Post: -called the city of DC on him and tried to get him cited for a zoning infraction -they called a "chicken expert": a they/them who has a chicken as an emotional support animal because of long COVID." Ace, DOJ Charges 19 Defendants in Philadelphia Medicare/Medicaid Fraud Scheme, "Our government budget is 90% fraud." Reason reasons Did Elon Musk Sentence Millions to Death by Dismantling USAID? "The study cited by Rep. Ro Khanna as the basis for that claim is statistical nonsense." No, but he tore a Falcon booster size hole in government/NGO complex and boy are they pissed. Am Minds Noah Wall notices Florida’s DOGE Is Delivering. From Da Caller, Disloyal Careerists Are Still Haunting The Pentagon’s Halls.
Ace Stop Me If You Heard This One Before, Redux: "Deal" to Open the Strait of Hormuz "Imminent"? Supposedly. Scott Bessent and Marco Rubio say a deal is imminent-adjacent. Hot Air quotes Reuters. This doesn't sound like a bona fide deal to me. This sounds like more duplicitous Iranian bullshit, still insisting they get to control the Strait and charges "tariffs" on oil ships, which they then use to buy missiles to shoot at Americans." At Hat Hair, Beege Welborn begs Could Ukraine Please Give Back Some of the BoomBoom and PewPew Stuff POTATUS Sent Them? PJM's Sarah Anderson So, Is Venezuela on the Path to Elections Now? Depends on Who You Ask. In a post-Nicolás Maduro world, Marco Rubio laid out three phases to create a stable and democratic Venezuela. 1. Stability. (Avoid civil unrest, mass migration, etc.) 2. Recovery. (Recover the economy.) 3. Transition to Democracy. (Create a path to and hold real elections.) " Eylon Levy @EylonALevy, "This sounds like a typical "Irish" joke, but it's true: The Irish Government bought a new €53m jet. And insisted on removing an Israeli-made navigational system. Now it can't land in the fog."
From PJM Stephen Kruiser complains I Prefer That My Groceries Not Taste Like Commie Terrorist, Jamie Wilson writes of Scamdani and the Truth About City-Owned Grocery Stores and VodkaPundit sees Mamdani’s War on New York Business Is a Double-Header. Jarvis @jarvis_best, "The four talking points I've been seeing a lot of today regarding the WalMarx ID kerfuffle: 1. Obviously we will have an ID rule to prevent product flipping, what are you stupid? 2. Obviously we won't have an ID rule, what are you stupid? 3. Shut up. 4. F*ck you." Kyle Becker at RedState sees Zohran Mamdani Hit With More Bad News After Walking Back Grocery Store Announcement. "Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s universal childcare plan will cost 50% more than he advertised, according to a new study. The proposed program is estimated to cost a whopping $9 billion annually, approximately with an average cost per child roughly $27,000, according to the report from the Center for New York City Affairs, a nonpartisan research organization affiliated with the New School." Nobody told him math would be part of the job. Hat Hair's Dave Strom hears Leftist Mamdani Supporters Scream 'I Didn't Think You Would Do This to Me!' Western Lensman @WesternLensman, "Scott Galloway is upset about being 'doxed' after he supported Mamdani's pied-à-terre tax: "He's taken a legitimate source of tax revenue, and he's turning it into a wanted poster." "What is the upside here? Why is he doing this?" Incredible." Frog, meet scorpion.
Complete Colorado asserts ‘Democratic socialism’ just an opening act for communism.wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "The holy grail of western parliamentary socialism is to find a form of Communism that's capitalist enough to survive. The debate is about finding the optimum balance between selling out and staying radical. For years the Democratic Party tried to find an accomodation between the true believers and its donor base. But now the Democratic Socialists like Mamdani believe it's time to clamp down on any pro-business policies that still remain." PJM's Dave Manney notes Mike Rowe Respects Workers More Than the Socialists Claiming to Save Them and Hong Chose Hasan Piker and Ilhan Omar. Wisconsin Should Notice. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, CNN Stumps DSA Candidate: Do You Still Want to Cancel Thanksgiving? UPDATE: Whiffs on Defund Police." Greg Price @greg_price11, "Collins: "Do you still believe that Thanksgiving should be cancelled?" Hong: "Thanksgiving is a time that is incredibly painful for many people in our communities." Driscoll at Insty, WE’RE NOT GOING TO MOSCOW. IT’S CZECHOSLOVAKIA. IT’S LIKE GOING INTO WISCONSIN: Wisconsin Socialist Candidate for Governor Francesca Hong Wants to Cancel Thanksgiving, Defund the Police as a Modest Step Towards Abolishing Them Entirely. Don Surber thinks It’s the candidates, stupid, "Democrat nominees are creepy and kooky, mysterious and spooky. They’re all together ooky." Dave Strom says This Is How Insane Michigan Democrats Have Become. RCP notices The Election Questions Democrats Won’t Answer, "why do they oppose transparency in our elections? Why do they fight so hard against universally popular measures like voter ID and removing noncitizens from the voter rolls that would help prevent noncitizen voting?" Matt Vespa at TownHall, Former West Virginia Senator Wasn't Playing These Games With a CBS News Host Over Socialism, Manchin.
Jonathan Turley on The Confession of Joe Biden. "The record is now largely complete. So is the inescapable conclusion: Biden lacked clarity on most everything but his alleged crimes. His deception and culpability were established in both the Zwonitzer and Hur interviews. Biden gave Hur a virtual confession, and Hur gave him a pass." And From Influence Peddler to Starving Artist: Hunter Biden Claims Family is Broke in Defaulting on $17 Million Bill. He ran out of influence to peddle.
From Ace, Man Who Murdered Father and Attempted to Murder Mother But Let Out of Jail by Democrats Charged With Setting Three Huge Fires in Washington, "Endless sympathy for the devil, because they see themselves in the devil," and Democrat Congressional Candidate and Soyboy Threatens Man With Knife, Then Gets Knocked the F*** Out "It's so good you guys." Video at link. KanekoaTheGreat @KanekoaTheGreat, "NEW: A Hawaiian man knocked out a Democratic congressional candidate with one punch after he allegedly threatened to shoot a woman at a Maui beach. Police say Kirill Basin, 40, became enraged after a 61-year-old man asked him to lower his music. Basin allegedly threatened to shoot the man’s wife and several bystanders. A local man seen approaching in the background confronted Basin, knocked him out, then calmly told him to stop threatening people. Police say Basin later pulled a knife and continued threatening people. When officers arrived, he allegedly threw the knife into the ocean. The same bystander swam out, recovered the knife, and handed it to police. Basin was charged with two counts of first-degree terroristic threatening. Bail was set at $1 million. Police say he has also been arrested in other assault and property-damage cases since May, and several people have obtained temporary restraining orders against him. Sounds like another successful day connecting with voters on the campaign trail!"
Lee Kuan Yimby @LeeKuanYimby, "SF fined a dad $195 for teaching his kid tennis on a public court without a coaching permit. The same city has illegal markets covering the sidewalks. All of the stuff is stolen. Every single regulation violated. Nothing happens. Absolute clown world." Actually, he wasn't fined, the cops dropped it when the kid said it was his father.At USA Today, Armed suspect arrested at SoCal golf course days before Trump's visit "An armed man was arrested on Sunday after federal agents said they observed him taking photographs and appearing to monitor security-planning activities throughout the Trump National Golf Club, days before the president was scheduled to visit the Southern California course."
Reason reasons about Elena Kagan's Warning to Progressives "The liberal justice wants the Supreme Court’s harshest progressive critics to chill out." Trump and the Republicans should try to appoint 4 more justices before the midterms, just because.
At CIS, The Ceuta Migrant Surge, and the Important SCOTUS Decision Everybody Missed "Two lessons: amnesty doesn’t work, but securing your borders does." NYPo's Brendan O'Neill opines that The overwhelming migrant blitz on Spain shatters globalist fiction and proves our leaders have abandoned sovereign borders. Beege Welborn, 'For the Children!' Ceuta Edition. Aaron Hanscom at PJM, Nick Shirley’s New Video Dismantles the Left’s Narrative on Ceuta's Migrant Crisis. H. Clay Aalders @KnifeTruth, "We should bring in more immigrants that love this country instead of hating it. Just a suggestion."Quote Tanya Oosthuizen @TanyaOosthuizen, "14 July. The first day of our new forever. South Africa to America. Forever grateful. What a beautiful life we have waiting for us."
Eric Utter at Am Think utters The biggest story of all is untold: The media’s refusal to tell the truth. At Hat Hair, Mark Judge notices Columbia Dean Who Praised Man Who Tortured Women Now Welcomes 'Journalist in Residence' Scott Pelley. Athena Thorne at PJM observes Leftists FREAK OUT That Trump's Truth Social Offers a New Service. Here's What They Don't Mention. "Back in the bad old days when the left had a total monopoly of all the social media platforms, if a right-leaning or even a centrist person complained about getting censored, leftists would sneer, "Why don't you just build your own platform?" So after Trump-45 left office and before Elon Musk had purchased and liberated Twitter/X, Trump did indeed start his own social media platform. He named it Truth Social and has been its most prominent content poster ever since. He placed the company in a trust when he became president-elect in 2024, with himself as the beneficiary and his son as the trustee. Leftists howled. I guess you're supposed to impoverish yourself or hand off your hand-built assets to strangers if you become president or something."
From NRO, Cambridge Prof Fighting Plagiarism Allegations Seems to Have Fabricated Major U.S. University Affiliation. Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "Ohio State University? This guy didn't just take Cambridge for a ride, he's fucking with them. Question now is, not how long he stays, but who's he taking down with him? To save their sociology department, they'll have to destroy it." Quote Abigail Anthony @abigailandwords, "New in @NRO: Cambridge Professor Jason Arday says on his faculty website that he is a Visiting Professor at the Ohio State University in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.But OSU says it has "no record" of him as an employee. And its DEI office closed in 2025." Nathan Cofnas @nathancofnas, ""We have a situation where the right is demonstrably 100% correct and the left is 100% wrong, so really there's no way to have a sensible discussion." Interesting analysis in@nytimes." Hat Hair's John Sexton sees The NY Times Glosses Over Jason Arday's Questionable Biography. Hans Mahncke @HansMahncke, "Wow. If you thought lawfare was bad in America, Britain just took it to an entirely new level. Police spent four months investigating a reporter for the crime of emailing questions to that Cambridge “academic” caught serially plagiarizing."
From the College Fix, Penn professor claims ‘cisness’ is unnatural, ‘sex isn’t real’ in new book. "Beans Velocci, Assistant Professor of History and Sociology of Science; Penn Arts & Sciences." Clearly not a biologist. Beege Welborn looks at AWFL Entitlement: A Short Note on Ingratitude and Lack of Common Decency. Woman abandoned by mother in childhood complains dad was a poor chef. 𝓑ᥫ᭡ @quesadaaa_, "Remembering how when my Mum left, my Dad still didn't learn to cook or do anything else she'd been doing solo all those years. I quickly taught myself to cook at age 10, using books from the library, as soon as I realised that every meal with my father was going to be a bag of frozen sausage rolls, plain toast, or nothing at all. By 13, I was cooking meals for him too. And that's how male incompetence trains women." Lisa Britton @LisaBritton, "I just can’t get over this. She says women’s ambition should be encouraged while men’s ambition should be discouraged. I’m tired of people demonizing male ambition. They’ve been doing it for decades, then wonder why many young men are struggling today. https://open.substack.com..."
The Wednesday Wetness
It seems inconceivable, even if you're aware of the perilous situation that the world's water supplies are in, but a developed coastal city in Texas that more than 300,000 people call home is now in serious danger of running out of water.
The city is Corpus Christi, and difficulties with water scarcity are now coming to a head after years of concerns over shortages. There are multiple issues combining here, perhaps most importantly the arrival of major industrial developments, off the back of the unlocking of vast oil and gas reserves that came with the shale revolution.
One plastics chemical complex, built in 2022, uses as much water for cooling every day as all the Corpus Christi residents combined.
A planned seawater desalination plant, which was supposed to ease some of the pressure brought on by rising industrial water usage, never materialized, further compounding the problem of supply.
Tuesday, August 4, 2026
Maryland, My Maryland
AP, Maryland Democrats begin advancing redistricting constitutional amendment
Democrats who control the Maryland Legislature began advancing legislation Monday intended to clear the way for a partisan redistricting process that could help their party pick up an additional U.S. House seat by 2028.I suppose after the mid-decade redistricting by states like Texas and Florida, we should expect revenge. However, both Texas and Florida refrained from eliminating representation from Democrats. Maryland, which is about 60:40 D:R was already heavily gerrymandered, with 7:1 D representation. I wonder if Florida or Texas would have time to steal another seat in return?
The General Assembly heard hours of debate and testimony on a proposed constitutional amendment intended to give Democrats greater latitude to draw congressional maps favoring their party, which already represents seven of the state’s eight House districts. The legislation was expected to reach a vote on final passage Tuesday, and the proposed changes to the state constitution would have to be approved by voters before lawmakers could begin considering new district lines.
Deep blue Maryland’s move is the latest turn in the national battle over redistricting, which kicked off a year ago and has reshaped the U.S. House map ahead of this year’s midterms.
Leaders of the General Assembly — who have been vague about their future plans for redrawing districts but in recent years have attempted to craft 8-0 maps — have characterized their proposal as an attempt to make sure Maryland is well-positioned to respond to redistricting by red states and contribute to efforts to elect Democrats who could serve as a check on the Trump administration.
The state’s Republicans called the proposed amendment a blatant power grab aimed at ousting Maryland’s lone GOP representative in Congress, Rep. Andy Harris.
“Gerrymandering is wrong. Whether it’s in a red state, a blue state — it’s just wrong,” said state Sen. Mary Beth Carozza.
The sole Republican district in Maryland is on the Eastern shore, dominated by fishing and agricultural. I can easily see a flotilla of watermen storming Annapolis from the water, and farmers surrounding the Capitol with farm equipment in response for losing their representation. That would be fun!
Science Resizes Megalodon
They made it bigger! At Palaeontologia electronica: Otodus megalodon vertebrae from Denmark, "Rediscovery of the associated gigantic vertebrae of the extinct megatooth shark, Otodus megalodon, from the Upper Miocene Gram Formation in Denmark, and comments on its paleobiological significance and the maximum possible size of the species."Abstract: The extinct megatooth shark, Otodus megalodon, is an iconic Neogene shark that may have reached as much as 24.3 m in total length (TL). The 24.3 m TL estimate was partly based on published photographs of an associated set of vertebrae from the Upper Miocene Gram Formation in Gram, Denmark, some of which allegedly had a diameter of 23 cm. Here, we report on the rediscovery of the specimen, which was thought to be lost, confirming the reported maximum diameter of 23 cm.
Those vertebrae co-occurred with remains of a cetorhinid (basking shark), but the morphology and size assessments of the vertebrae suggest that they belong to O. megalodon, with the possibility that the cetorhinid remains represent stomach content of the megatooth shark. The vertebral specimen of O. megalodon was also used to decipher its ontogenetic growth patterns, and this study suggests that this specific individual had the potential to grow even slightly larger than 24.3 m. However, the growth model presented in this work must be viewed as highly tentative. Nevertheless, the O. megalodon specimen described herein is significant because it represents the largest shark vertebral specimen known to date, and quite possibly even the largest non-tetrapod vertebrae ever recorded. Ultimately, a more complete skeletal specimen of O. megalodon, ideally with associated teeth, is required for any further discussion on the maximum possible size of the fossil species.
For those reluctant to use Euroweenie units 24.3 m equals 79.7 ft, and 23 cm equals about 9 inches. That's a big fish. Our biggest Meg tooth is just about 4.5 inches, although the world record is about 7 inches. We have a vertebra that might be a Meg, (it's hard to be sure, but at least it was a large lamnid shark), that's about 3 inches.
Flotsam and Jetsam - More Fauci Follies Follow
The last honest lawyer, Jonathan Turley notices The Media Takes the Fifth and Denounces Those Questioning Fauci as an “Assault on Science.” Sundance at CTH hosts Sunday Talks – CNN’s Dana Bash Beclowns Herself Defending Fauci, Censorship, Govt Fraud and Weaponizing Viruses, During Confrontation with HHS Secretary RFK Jr. At Althouse, RFK Jr. excoriates Dana Bash: "You're talking nonsense. You're making assertions. You can't support it. And then when I call you on them, they're you're telling me I'm arguing...." PoIiMath @politicalmath, "I am no RFK fan, but he's no more responsible for the measles outbreak in the US than he is for the much worse measles outbreak in Canada." Quote The Bulwark @BulwarkOnline, "Bash: "Do you accept some responsibility for this measles outbreak?" RFK: "Absolutely not…Did I cause those measles outbreaks?" Bash: "You're the most famous vaccine skeptic on the planet."" Matt Vespa at TownHall thinks This Could Have Been the Reason Why Fauci Took the Fifth Over 100 Times "It was pride. He didn’t want to be subjected to three hours of him tearing down his temple, especially when it came to the legal loophole the Obama administration left him to tinker with these viruses that created so much havoc." Mike Fumento at Am Spec, Fifth Amendment Fauci’s Narcissism Destroyed Faith in Scientific Methodology. "Congress may be investigating COVID, but the deeper scandal is how one bureaucrat reshaped science into dogma." It still works, if they bother to follow it. At his NYPo gig Insty opines on Fauci’s follies — time to toss the ‘science is settled’ groupthink. PJM's Kevin Downey calls COVID-19 Fauci's Holocaust. At CNN, Dr. Ashish Jha on COVID-19: 'It probably was a lab leak' "Former Biden White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator, Dr. Ashish Jha, tells Dana Bash, "When I went into the White House, my view was this was almost surely a natural outbreak, maybe a lab leak. Based on information I learned and based on information I've seen, I have come to conclude that it is more likely to have been a lab leak."" At Hat Hair VIP, Chris Toto noted Late-Night Hacks Did Exactly What We Expected Re: FauciGate. Late night hacks gonna hack. At Pirate's Cove, Bill Teach hears Louisiana Joins Investigation Into Fauci After His 5th Amendment Hearing, "Louisiana AG says state will investigate Fauci after Senate hearing, "Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill (R) said her state will investigate Dr. Anthony Fauci after a recent fiery Senate hearing where the former chief White House medical adviser pleaded the Fifth Amendment in response to questions from Republican lawmakers. In a post on the social platform X on Saturday, Murrill said that “Louisiana and Missouri deposed Dr. Fauci.” “At the time, he claimed to not recall many key details of his own actions and now we are discovering contemporaneous records he kept,” she added. “Louisiana will join Alabama & Florida in investigating Fauci and whether he committed any other offenses that could be pursued in our State courts.”" Driscoll at Insty, thinks REPRISALS WOULD BE A GOOD START: Marc J. Randazza @marcorandazza, "What happened 6 years ago: “get over it” What someone else did 400 years ago: “give me free shit and no accountability forever”" Quote Grinch @Uncatfishable, "Y’all still mad about a lockdown from 6/7 years ago that saved millions of lives. Fucking idiots." John Davidson at Da Fed asserts Unless Fauci Is Held Accountable, America Will Never Recover From His Lies. Never is a long time.
From AMAC, President Trump Fixes Biden’s Mess on Medicare Drug Premiums. "The Trump administration is doing the right thing by fixing a totally unworkable Biden-era Medicare subsidy program. The hysterical reaction from the left should be seen for what it is – nothing more than another shameful election-season scare tactic."
News Wax reports Darline Graham Backs Trump Agenda in Senate Debut. Good. I worried she might be a little squishy. I still do.
Jordan Schachtel at Am Great thinks AI Will Save the U.S. Economy "The pace of innovation is unlike anything we’ve ever seen." But can it save us from an overweening government stealing the gains? Sarah Anderson at PJM sees Javier Milei Just Proposed a Great Idea. Every Government Should Follow His Lead. "Essentially, if the Argentine national government runs a fiscal deficit for several months in a row, the Congress receives a warning that it has a matter of weeks to fix it. If it doesn't hit the deadline, the "shackle" activates automatically, and the political class will be the ones impacted. Here's what happens: 1. Non-essential government functions are suspended (hello, government shutdown). 2. All new spending is frozen and will not be authorized until the problem is resolved. 3. No new contracts can be awarded. 4. No new public-sector employees can be hired. 5. Discretionary transfers to the provinces are halted. And last but not least, the best part: 6. The salaries of the top politicians stop completely. The vice president, ministers, secretaries, undersecretaries, national senators, national deputies, and even El presidente himself will not receive a dime of taxpayer money until they solve the problem." Great ideas, too bad Congress would never allow it. Sundance at CTH points out Manufacturing Index Reflects Continued Strong Growth – Highest in 4 Years and Secretary Rubio Discusses Global Challenges and Hints Toward the Never Asked Question: "why have your views changed so dramatically in the past two years, and/or are you just playing a role." At Oil Price.com, Guyana’s Oil Boom Matters More Than Ever. "In a surprise development, the tiny South American nation of Guyana recently emerged as a major oil exporter. In a mere four years, the former British colony of one million went from first discovery to first oil. Guyana has cemented its place among South America’s leading oil producers, pumping nearly one million barrels per day, making it the continent’s third-largest oil producer. The rapid expansion of Guyana’s offshore oil industry will enhance energy security in the Americas at a crucial time, with heightened Middle East tensions sharply impacting global supply." At WUWT, Joe Fournier Blames Canada’s Terrible Regulations For Wildfires Ruining America’s Summer.
Matt Vespa says Oh, So Get a Load of the Judge Who Tossed Trump's NJ Lawsuit Over Its Voter Database "U.S. District Judge Zahid Quraishi granted a motion to dismiss filed by Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell, who also serves as secretary of state, and rejected the U.S. Department of Justice’s expansive interpretation of the Civil Rights Act of 1960... What do you expect from a jurist with this donation history? But even worse, this gobbledygook on Trump’s immigration agenda in February (via NYT):"
At News Wax, Report: US, Iran Near Deal to Open Strait of Hormuz for 60 Days. Cameron Arcand at TownHall hears Trump Halts Massive Iran Attack Plan. Here's Why. "The president reportedly spoke with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Saturday, who cautioned against massive strikes on the Islamic Republic, CNN reported." Don't listen. Keep pressure on the IRGC and mullahs. As PJM's Stephen Kruiser notes, Iran War Continues to Be Whatever Anyone Wants It to Be. "Iran has been the big, bad, moneybags wolf in the Middle East for a very long time, and the psycho clerics who run it are not amused by the idea of being kneecapped by the Great Satan. This was never going to be easy."
From Pirate's Cove, Oh Noes, MAGA Seizes On Mamdani’s Grocery Stores Requiring ID. Frank @richardrahl1086, "I was reliably told by Democrats that people poor people, the ones that would theoretically benefit most from these stores, do not have ID nor the means to obtain ID." Quote Kevin Bass @kevinnbass, "They refuse to require ID to vote. But they will require ID to use the government grocery store." PJM's Matt Margolis thinks Mamdani's Grocery Stores Expose the Democrats' Biggest Voter ID Lie and Bob Spencer believes In Mamdani’s New York, It’s 1933 All Over Again. Even Politico admits Democratic discontent with Mamdani mounts in New York City’s outer boroughs. John Sexton at Hat Hair hears Galloway: 'He's Implying We've Done Something Wrong' "He posted a list of 900,000 people, implying they'd all done something wrong, but only sent letters to 17,000 of them. That's less than 2 percent. Put another way, 98 percent of the people on the list got doxed for no reason other than Mamdani's desire to demonize them." From NYPo, NYC to unveil new Columbus statue as group sidesteps Mamdani’s middle finger.
PJM's Cathy Salgado is happy to report DHS Deported 1.46 Million Aliens in the Last 12 Months. It's a start. From Pirate's Cove, Detentions For Illegals Hit Record High In July. Ben Weingarten at Am Mind, After Barbara: Illegal Aliens and the Census, Part II. At Compact, Sam Munson explains How Immigration Created a Two-Tier Legal System. Sundance hosts DHS Secretary Mullin Discusses Immigration Reform, Workforce and Deportation "DHS Secretary: "Is immigration reform possible? No.""
From the Euro Con, More Than 1,500 Migrants Swim Into Spain as Ceuta Is Overwhelmed. State of the Day has State of Friday: BODIES + ‘SO MANY RIGHT WINGERS’ "Tens of thousands of military-aged men streamed over the border. At least five Facebook pages (now taken down) were coordinating the crowds. Literal truckloads of people were driven up to the border and dumped." Sundance, Nick Shirley Went to Ceuta, Spain, and almost got knifed. Quotulatiousness wonders is The Ceuta invasion a tipping point? At Spiked, Europe is suicidally complacent about the Islamist threat. "The Paris stabbing suspect said Allah made him do it. So why do the authorities say there’s no Islamist motive?" One can be both Islamist and crazy; in fact, it's kind of a natural fit. Beege Wellborn at Hat Hair examines The Massachusetts Muslim Protection Racket and New Prime Minister Burnham Has a Prisoner Problem on His Hands.
Greg Lukianoff at the Eternally Radical Idea sees Europe v ‘hate speech’ continues! Self-censorship in the classroom! Deepfakes! & more!
At Mediaite Rosie O’Donnell Calls Trump a ‘Pedophile’ and ‘Convicted Sexual Rapist’ With No Pushback From Ana Navarro, now that she's returned to the US, and back on The View. Tim O'Brien wonders Did Tucker Carlson Just Host the First Meeting of 'The Lincoln Project 2.0'? "Posing for the camera around the table are Carlson; Marjorie Taylor Greene and her husband, news presenter Brian Glenn; Joe Kent and his wife, Heather, a former reality TV personality; and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and his wife, former congressional staffer Carolyn Moffa."
John Sexton continues the story of the Star Academic at Cambridge who Can't Back Up His Own Stories. Driscoll calls him JASON GUMP: Cambridge professor made impossible claim he was on Seven Up. Matt Taibbi @mtaibbi, "That there’s even a controversy about this story is incredible. If a Cambridge prof can plagiarize this carelessly and get away with it for years, and still have defenders, shows academia is totally broken." Quote Jesse Singal @jessesingal, "1/ In addition to the document's plagiarism, the title of Arday's PhD thesis has a grammatical error -- he puts an apostrophe after "teachers" that shouldn't be there -- that is repeated dozens or hundreds of times throughout the document." Campus Reform explores How college graduates became more likely to vote Democrat. "Once a Republican-leaning voting bloc, college graduates now overwhelmingly favor Democrats as campuses expand progressive activism beyond the humanities. The rise of student debt, declining confidence in higher education, and the spread of identity-based programming have coincided with a dramatic political realignment among college graduates." The College Fix reports Oklahoma colleges face federal complaint over nursing scholarship only for Native Americans and U. Tampa English professor claims Trump’s words contribute to declining support for trans rights. So? Hat Hair's Betsey McCaughey looks at Teachers Union Brainwashing. Teri Christoph again, Beautiful: Cornell Brat Who Refused to Work With Jews Gets Brutal Life Lesson From Mom and Dad. New York Post @nypost, "Parents kick Jew-hating Cornell student Austin Franco out of house, but Ivy welcomes him back." "They told The Post that they found their son’s behavior reprehensible — and believe he’s fallen victim to dark online influences." At the Tennessean, 'White. Blonde. Jew' author says store canceled event amid backlash.
Jackson Thompson @JackThompsonFOX, "Fever coach Stephanie White is asked her stance on males playing in women's sports. "I wouldn't really say that I'm educated enough from a scientific standpoint. I don't ever believe that exclusion is the answer." She then opens up on "frustration" over the debate being tied to the team lately, as they are playing their second game in a row with a rally celebrating Sophie Cunningham's stance for protecting women's sports." Tim Young @TimRunsHisMouth, "More people would pay to see Sophie Cunningham and Caitlin Clark play a game of HORSE than would pay to see the rest of the WNBA play all of their games combined." Quote New York Post @nypost, "Fever coach Stephanie White admits 'frustration' with lingering Sophie Cunningham drama." Clay Travis @ClayTravis, "Important announcement: I am upping my offer, $10 million dollars for a head-to-head basketball game between the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces and a boy's high school state title team of my choice. If the Aces beat my team, I will give them $10 million," and Clay Travis @ClayTravis, "I am not kidding about this. I am prepared to buy a @wnba expansion franchise and locate them in Nashville. I pledge to have a 100% trans team, all men who identify as women. I will also employ a 100% trans coaching staff. Most inclusive team in history!" Quote Clay Travis @ClayTravis "WNBA coach says men should be able to play in the WNBA. Finally! Where is my franchise, @wnba? My team will be 100% trans. The Travis owned Nashville Balls will be the most inclusive women’s/men’s team in WNBA history. Stop discriminating against us!"
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