hotair--2020-10-15--Bari Weiss: 'American liberalism is under siege'

Bari Weiss has a new piece for Tablet magazine talking about the ideology that is even now vying to replace the American liberalism that most of us grew up with .
Her piece is directed primarily to Jews but its broader points seem applicable to all Americans who are concerned about the direction in which the left ’ s new normal is taking us as a society .
It opens with a description of liberalism in the broadest sense , i.e .
the idea that some things in life are beyond politics , that there are universal values that apply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in society is to judge people as individuals not merely as representatives of groups based on superficial characteristics like race .
Those ideas are no longer in ascendance at many American institutions .
Weiss writes that “ American liberalism is under siege ” from a new ideology : No one has yet decided on the name for the force that has come to unseat liberalism .
Some say it ’ s “ Social Justice.
” The author Rod Dreher has called it “ therapeutic totalitarianism.
” The writer Wesley Yang refers to it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in , the successor to liberalism… The beating heart of this new ideology is critical race theory .
The legal scholar Angela Harris put it concisely in her foreword to Critical Race Theory : An Introduction : Unlike traditional civil rights discourse , which stresses incrementalism and step-by-step progress , critical race theory questions the very foundations of the liberal order , including equality theory , legal reasoning , Enlightenment rationalism , and neutral principles of constitutional law .
Critical race theory says there is no such thing as neutrality , not even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the very notion of colorblindness—the Kingian dream of judging people not based on the color of their skin but by the content of their character—must itself be deemed racist .
Racism is no longer about individual discrimination .
It is about systems that allow for disparate outcomes among racial groups .
If everyone doesn ’ t finish the race at the same time , then the course must have been flawed and should be dismantled… In fact , any feature of human existence that creates disparity of outcomes must be eradicated : The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ itself can be defined as inherently racist or evidence of white supremacy , as a Smithsonian institution suggested this summer .
The KIPP charter schools recently eliminated the phrase “ work hard ” from its famous motto “ Work Hard .
Be Nice.
” because the idea of working hard “ supports the illusion of meritocracy.
” Denise Young Smith , one of the first Black people to reach Apple ’ s executive team , left her job in the wake of asserting that skin color wasn ’ t the only legitimate marker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ culture ” that , as the writer Zaid Jilani has noted , is spreading “ across the entire corporate world and is enforced by a highly educated activist class.
” Weiss points to Ibram X. Kendi as the “ most powerful exponent of this worldview.
” Not only is Kendi ’ s book on anti-racism a best-seller , his new organization recently received a $ 10 million donation from Twitter ’ s Jack Dorsey .
Kendi ’ s vision for the world is one in which equality of outcome is enforced by a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ To fix the original sin of racism , ” he wrote in Politico , “ Americans should pass an anti-racist amendment to the U.S. Constitution that enshrines two guiding anti-racist principals [ sic ] : Racial inequity is evidence of racist policy and the different racial groups are equals.
” To back up the amendment , he proposes a Department of Anti-Racism .
This department would have the power to investigate not just local governments but private businesses and would punish those “ who do not voluntarily change their racist policy and ideas.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ view a Jewish day school , which suggests that the Jews are God ’ s chosen people , let alone one that teaches Zionism .
The enforcement mechanism may still be a ways off but the ideology driving it has already taken over major American institutions : The piece concludes with Weiss describing how there is already a divide between some of the wealthy , well-placed people who are defending this new ideology , in part because it is popular and in part because they are well-off enough to avoid its consequences .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ call by someone eager to defend Ibram Kendi and to describe her views as “ retrograde and uncool.
” But Weiss worries that “ embracing , such nihilistic and anti-American ideas ” will have negative consequences for Jewish Americans .
“ It is not by chance that Jews thrived in a world in which liberalism prevailed , ” she writes .
The same may not be true under the new ideology .

Bari Weiss has a new piece for Tablet magazine talking about the ideology that is even now vying to replace the American liberalism that most of us grew up with. Her piece is directed primarily to Jews but its broader points seem applicable to all Americans who are concerned about the direction in which the left’s new normal is taking us as a society.
It opens with a description of liberalism in the broadest sense, i.e. the idea that some things in life are beyond politics, that there are universal values that apply to everyone, that an important goal in society is to judge people as individuals not merely as representatives of groups based on superficial characteristics like race. Those ideas are no longer in ascendance at many American institutions. Weiss writes that “American liberalism is under siege” from a new ideology:
No one has yet decided on the name for the force that has come to unseat liberalism. Some say it’s “Social Justice.” The author Rod Dreher has called it “therapeutic totalitarianism.” The writer Wesley Yang refers to it as “the successor ideology”—as in, the successor to liberalism… The beating heart of this new ideology is critical race theory. The legal scholar Angela Harris put it concisely in her foreword to Critical Race Theory: An Introduction: Unlike traditional civil rights discourse, which stresses incrementalism and step-by-step progress, critical race theory questions the very foundations of the liberal order, including equality theory, legal reasoning, Enlightenment rationalism, and neutral principles of constitutional law. Critical race theory says there is no such thing as neutrality, not even in the law, which is why the very notion of colorblindness—the Kingian dream of judging people not based on the color of their skin but by the content of their character—must itself be deemed racist. Racism is no longer about individual discrimination. It is about systems that allow for disparate outcomes among racial groups. If everyone doesn’t finish the race at the same time, then the course must have been flawed and should be dismantled… In fact, any feature of human existence that creates disparity of outcomes must be eradicated: The nuclear family, politeness, even rationality itself can be defined as inherently racist or evidence of white supremacy, as a Smithsonian institution suggested this summer. The KIPP charter schools recently eliminated the phrase “work hard” from its famous motto “Work Hard. Be Nice.” because the idea of working hard “supports the illusion of meritocracy.” Denise Young Smith, one of the first Black people to reach Apple’s executive team, left her job in the wake of asserting that skin color wasn’t the only legitimate marker of diversity—the victim of a “diversity culture” that, as the writer Zaid Jilani has noted, is spreading “across the entire corporate world and is enforced by a highly educated activist class.”
Weiss points to Ibram X. Kendi as the “most powerful exponent of this worldview.” Not only is Kendi’s book on anti-racism a best-seller, his new organization recently received a $10 million donation from Twitter’s Jack Dorsey. Kendi’s vision for the world is one in which equality of outcome is enforced by a new federal Department of Anti-Racism:
“To fix the original sin of racism,” he wrote in Politico, “Americans should pass an anti-racist amendment to the U.S. Constitution that enshrines two guiding anti-racist principals [sic]: Racial inequity is evidence of racist policy and the different racial groups are equals.” To back up the amendment, he proposes a Department of Anti-Racism. This department would have the power to investigate not just local governments but private businesses and would punish those “who do not voluntarily change their racist policy and ideas.” Imagine how such a department would view a Jewish day school, which suggests that the Jews are God’s chosen people, let alone one that teaches Zionism.
The enforcement mechanism may still be a ways off but the ideology driving it has already taken over major American institutions:
As the philosopher Peter Boghossian has noted: “This ideology is the dominant moral orthodoxy in our universities, and has seeped out and spread to every facet of American life— publishing houses, tech, arts, theater, newspapers, media,” and, increasingly, corporations. It has not grabbed power by dictates from above, but by seizing the means of sense-making from below.
The piece concludes with Weiss describing how there is already a divide between some of the wealthy, well-placed people who are defending this new ideology, in part because it is popular and in part because they are well-off enough to avoid its consequences. She describes being lectured on a conference call by someone eager to defend Ibram Kendi and to describe her views as “retrograde and uncool.” But Weiss worries that “embracing, such nihilistic and anti-American ideas” will have negative consequences for Jewish Americans. “It is not by chance that Jews thrived in a world in which liberalism prevailed,” she writes. The same may not be true under the new ideology.


hotair--2020-10-15--Massachusetts student who supported Trump gets apology from school

Who ’ s up for yet another story about the indoctrination of our youth in the nation ’ s public schools ?
This tale comes to us from O ’ Maley Middle School in Gloucester , Massachusetts , and while still disturbing , it at least has something of a happy ending .
12-year-old Jackson Cody is a typical 7th grader who attends this school and his class is somehow being allowed to attend school in person .
Recently , after the first presidential debate , one of Jackson ’ s teachers scheduled a classroom exercise where the students would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of it .
That ’ s when things took a turn for the worse .
Jackson made the “ mistake ” of saying that he was impressed with how President Trump did and his performance in office .
The response from the teacher was less than open and welcoming , to say the least .
( CBS Boston ) “ I just feel like our country wasn ’ t in a great place .
I just wanted to learn more about Donald Trump because it seemed like he was making our country rise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 7th grader said .
He voiced that support for the president during a recent classroom discussion of the debate .
“ I raised my hand fully and a few kids were going to raise their hands but then they heard the teacher say to me , ‘ Oh Mr. Jackson I thought I liked you.
’ She proceeded to ask why I support a racist and a pedophile , ” Jackson recalled .
Can you even imagine a teacher doing something this blatant in the middle of a class covering current events @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a very appropriate assignment for the children to watch a presidential debate and then come to class to discuss it .
But as soon as one student raised his hand in support of Donald Trump she informed him that she didn ’ t like him anymore .
She then went on to insinuate that this 12-year-old was a supporter of racism and pedophilia .
As I mentioned above , this isn ’ t education .
It ’ s indoctrination .
And it ’ s being meted out in a particularly cruel fashion .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the teacher at this time , but it sounds as if she ’ ll still be working at O ’ Maley Middle School .
The good news portion of the story comes with what happened next .
The child ’ s parents contacted a First Amendment rights attorney who asked the school for an apology .
Amazingly ( and probably fearing a costly lawsuit ) , The teacher publicly apologized and the school is allegedly instituting some sensitivity training for the rest of the staff in an effort to prevent something like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is , not all stories like this have a happy ending .
In far too many schools , the entire faculty is heavily liberal and they push their views onto the children using their positions as figures of authority .
For every student like Jackson Cody , there are probably thousands of others who are cowed into submission for having “ the wrong sort of ideas ” if they dare to speak up at all .
Many of them will graduate high school and go on to colleges where the atmosphere is even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meaning if you have any conservative leanings .

Who’s up for yet another story about the indoctrination of our youth in the nation’s public schools? This tale comes to us from O’Maley Middle School in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and while still disturbing, it at least has something of a happy ending. 12-year-old Jackson Cody is a typical 7th grader who attends this school and his class is somehow being allowed to attend school in person. Recently, after the first presidential debate, one of Jackson’s teachers scheduled a classroom exercise where the students would discuss the debate and what they thought of it. That’s when things took a turn for the worse. Jackson made the “mistake” of saying that he was impressed with how President Trump did and his performance in office. The response from the teacher was less than open and welcoming, to say the least. (CBS Boston)
“I just feel like our country wasn’t in a great place. I just wanted to learn more about Donald Trump because it seemed like he was making our country rise again and become America again,” the 7th grader said. He voiced that support for the president during a recent classroom discussion of the debate. “I raised my hand fully and a few kids were going to raise their hands but then they heard the teacher say to me, ‘Oh Mr. Jackson I thought I liked you.’ She proceeded to ask why I support a racist and a pedophile,” Jackson recalled.
Can you even imagine a teacher doing something this blatant in the middle of a class covering current events? She gave what seemed to be a very appropriate assignment for the children to watch a presidential debate and then come to class to discuss it. But as soon as one student raised his hand in support of Donald Trump she informed him that she didn’t like him anymore. She then went on to insinuate that this 12-year-old was a supporter of racism and pedophilia.
As I mentioned above, this isn’t education. It’s indoctrination. And it’s being meted out in a particularly cruel fashion. They aren’t releasing the name of the teacher at this time, but it sounds as if she’ll still be working at O’Maley Middle School.
The good news portion of the story comes with what happened next. The child’s parents contacted a First Amendment rights attorney who asked the school for an apology. Amazingly (and probably fearing a costly lawsuit), The teacher publicly apologized and the school is allegedly instituting some sensitivity training for the rest of the staff in an effort to prevent something like this from happening again.
The problem is, not all stories like this have a happy ending. In far too many schools, the entire faculty is heavily liberal and they push their views onto the children using their positions as figures of authority. For every student like Jackson Cody, there are probably thousands of others who are cowed into submission for having “the wrong sort of ideas” if they dare to speak up at all. Many of them will graduate high school and go on to colleges where the atmosphere is even more toxic and free speech has no meaning if you have any conservative leanings.


hotair--2020-10-15--Delaware's most famous computer repairman: Hunter Biden's alleged laptop contained "disturbing" item

Delaware's most famous computer repairman: Hunter Biden's alleged laptop contained "disturbing" items

More disturbing than an alleged sex video and crack smoking that the New York Post first reported ?
Apparently so , although computer repairman John Paul Mac Isaac won ’ t specify what that might be .
Speaking to Fox News late yesterday , the Delaware repair-store owner says it was that disturbing content that caused him to notify the FBI , and was in part why the Department of Justice got a subpoena for the computer and hard drive back in December .
“ I wanted it out of my shop , ” Isaac says , but that raises @ @ @ @ @ @ @ owner of a Delaware computer repair store where a man he believes was Hunter Biden dropped off a laptop that allegedly contained emails detailing an opportunity for a meeting between former Vice President Joe Biden and a top Burisma executive and other “ disturbing ” items , told Fox News on Wednesday that he was frightened by what he saw .
The man , John Paul Mac Isaac , said he has a condition that affects his vision and “ can ’ t be 100 % sure ” it was Hunter Biden who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Wilmington shop owner said he contacted the FBI out of concern , but declined to specify what he meant .
… “ I just don ’ t know what to say , or what I ’ m allowed to say , ” Isaac said .
“ I know that I saw , I saw stuff .
And I was concerned .
I was concerned that somebody might want to come looking for this stuff eventually and I wanted it out of my shop.
” When I raised some skepticism about this part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the repairman would have thought to call the FBI , a number of people responded to say that computer repair specialists see a lot of weird stuff .
Fair enough , and that would also explain why someone might drop off a laptop with incriminating sex and crack-smoking images and video , too .
Some people just aren ’ t too bright , although it ’ s tough to believe that Hunter would have let a laptop with the very smoking gun on Ukraine that Rudy Giuliani had been seeking for two years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the stuff was so disturbing that Isaac didn ’ t want it in his shop , why did he make a copy of it and keep it for himself for months afterward ?
At least we know more about the timeline than we ’ ve learned from the Post ’ s reporting .
Mac Isaac says that he got the laptop in April 2019 , and that he looked through the files two or three months later .
Despite his discovery at the smoking-gun e-mails ( as well as the “ disturbing ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his shop ) , he waited a couple of more months to tell an “ intermediary ” about it , who then contacted the FBI .
The FBI came out and got a “ forensic copy ” of the laptop , and returned with a subpoena in December to seize it .
Sometime after that , the FBI stopped returning his phone calls , which angered Isaac .
Apparently , however , Isaac used his own copy to try to get some interest from members of Congress in the data .
None of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s “ intermediary ” contacted Giuliani ’ s attorney , Robert Costello .
That ’ s a convenient way to explain an October surprise , but who are the members of Congress that got contacted on this ?
And why didn ’ t they want to bite on this ?
That might be an interesting tale in itself .
Even Fox News sounds a little mystified about this tale , and notes that Isaac doesn ’ t really have a good explanation for his motives .
He does , however , deny @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : When asked , Isaac , whose social media posts indicate is a supporter of President Trump , rejected the possibility that the laptop did not belong to Hunter Biden and was an attempt to set him up .
… When asked what he hoped would come of the information once it went public , Isaac was ambivalent about his motives .
He acknowledged the current political landscape had played a role in his actions and specifically referenced Trump ’ s impeachment as a motivating factor .
“ I wanted — above all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Isaac said .
“ I wanted anonymity .
I wanted just to be [ able ] to wash my hands of it , and like it never happened .
And that did not happen.
” It didn ’ t happen because Isaac kept pushing the information .
If he had not kept a copy for himself , if he hadn ’ t involved his “ intermediary , ” if he hadn ’ t tried passing this to members of Congress , then it would have been easy for Isaac to have “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it.
” All of this sounds a little difficult to believe , especially this last part but even the idea that Hunter Biden would just leave three laptops in some rando repair shop that contained this kind of explosive information ( with Beau Biden Foundation stickers on them , no less ! )
.
His business connections must have included some firms with in-house IT , right ?
Or connections to politically reliable IT experts who weren ’ t supporting Donald Trump on social media platforms ?
Isaac might or might not be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he ’ s not coming across as the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree , either .
He might not think he got scammed , but that doesn ’ t mean he wasn ’ t .
Until the FBI or the Department of Justice can answer questions about the laptop and authentication of it and the data , keep your Large Grain of Salt Dispenser handy .
Update : Hugh Hewitt succinctly sums up what may well have happened here : That ’ s why it pays to be skeptical , especially when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this extraordinary .

More disturbing than an alleged sex video and crack smoking that the New York Post first reported? Apparently so, although computer repairman John Paul Mac Isaac won’t specify what that might be. Speaking to Fox News late yesterday, the Delaware repair-store owner says it was that disturbing content that caused him to notify the FBI, and was in part why the Department of Justice got a subpoena for the computer and hard drive back in December.
“I wanted it out of my shop,” Isaac says, but that raises another question about this story:
The owner of a Delaware computer repair store where a man he believes was Hunter Biden dropped off a laptop that allegedly contained emails detailing an opportunity for a meeting between former Vice President Joe Biden and a top Burisma executive and other “disturbing” items, told Fox News on Wednesday that he was frightened by what he saw. The man, John Paul Mac Isaac, said he has a condition that affects his vision and “can’t be 100% sure” it was Hunter Biden who dropped off the computer for repair. The Wilmington shop owner said he contacted the FBI out of concern, but declined to specify what he meant. … “I just don’t know what to say, or what I’m allowed to say,” Isaac said. “I know that I saw, I saw stuff. And I was concerned. I was concerned that somebody might want to come looking for this stuff eventually and I wanted it out of my shop.”
When I raised some skepticism about this part of the story yesterday as to why the repairman would have thought to call the FBI, a number of people responded to say that computer repair specialists see a lot of weird stuff. Fair enough, and that would also explain why someone might drop off a laptop with incriminating sex and crack-smoking images and video, too. Some people just aren’t too bright, although it’s tough to believe that Hunter would have let a laptop with the very smoking gun on Ukraine that Rudy Giuliani had been seeking for two years out of his sight.
But if the stuff was so disturbing that Isaac didn’t want it in his shop, why did he make a copy of it and keep it for himself for months afterward?
At least we know more about the timeline than we’ve learned from the Post’s reporting. Mac Isaac says that he got the laptop in April 2019, and that he looked through the files two or three months later. Despite his discovery at the smoking-gun e-mails (as well as the “disturbing” stuff he didn’t want in his shop), he waited a couple of more months to tell an “intermediary” about it, who then contacted the FBI. The FBI came out and got a “forensic copy” of the laptop, and returned with a subpoena in December to seize it.
Sometime after that, the FBI stopped returning his phone calls, which angered Isaac. Apparently, however, Isaac used his own copy to try to get some interest from members of Congress in the data. None of them responded, so last month Isaac’s “intermediary” contacted Giuliani’s attorney, Robert Costello. That’s a convenient way to explain an October surprise, but who are the members of Congress that got contacted on this? And why didn’t they want to bite on this? That might be an interesting tale in itself.
Even Fox News sounds a little mystified about this tale, and notes that Isaac doesn’t really have a good explanation for his motives. He does, however, deny that this whole thing was a set-up:
When asked, Isaac, whose social media posts indicate is a supporter of President Trump, rejected the possibility that the laptop did not belong to Hunter Biden and was an attempt to set him up. … When asked what he hoped would come of the information once it went public, Isaac was ambivalent about his motives. He acknowledged the current political landscape had played a role in his actions and specifically referenced Trump’s impeachment as a motivating factor. “I wanted — above all, I wanted safety and security,” Isaac said. “I wanted anonymity. I wanted just to be [able] to wash my hands of it, and like it never happened. And that did not happen.”
It didn’t happen because Isaac kept pushing the information. If he had not kept a copy for himself, if he hadn’t involved his “intermediary,” if he hadn’t tried passing this to members of Congress, then it would have been easy for Isaac to have “wash[ed] my hands of it.”
All of this sounds a little difficult to believe, especially this last part but even the idea that Hunter Biden would just leave three laptops in some rando repair shop that contained this kind of explosive information (with Beau Biden Foundation stickers on them, no less!). His business connections must have included some firms with in-house IT, right? Or connections to politically reliable IT experts who weren’t supporting Donald Trump on social media platforms?
Isaac might or might not be on the level, but thus far he’s not coming across as the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, either. He might not think he got scammed, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t. Until the FBI or the Department of Justice can answer questions about the laptop and authentication of it and the data, keep your Large Grain of Salt Dispenser handy.
Update: Hugh Hewitt succinctly sums up what may well have happened here:
Why be cautious about Hunter Biden emails? B/c a foreign power could salt a mine of data with some stolen genuine materials (photos) and then fabricate entire email chains. I’ve been warning about this for 16 years: https://t.co/ERbG3M9IYt But censorship of materials isn’t answer — Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) October 15, 2020
That’s why it pays to be skeptical, especially when sources sound contradictory and the claims are this extraordinary.


hotair--2020-10-15--Biden campaign manager: We think this race is a lot closer than the pundits do

Up to you .
You can choose to believe that this is true or you can choose to believe that it ’ s a lie being told by the campaign to scare Biden voters into not being complacent .
The wider his lead in the public polls , the greater the incentive for lefties who are lukewarm towards him to stay home on November 3 in the belief that he doesn ’ t need their vote .
Which , frankly , may have been fatal to Hillary Clinton four years ago .
Remember that some election models gave her a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you were a progressive who didn ’ t like Clinton but really didn ’ t like Trump and you saw data nerds smugly assuring people that victory was in the bag , you felt comfortable skipping the election or casting a protest vote for Jill Stein .
We all know how that worked out in Michigan , Wisconsin , and Pennsylvania .
The mushy pundit view of the true state of the race right now is “ somewhere in between.
” The polls *are* overstating Biden ’ s lead — he ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by 12 points — but he ’ d get to 270 without much difficulty if the vote were held today .
Jen O ’ Malley Dillon ’ s job is convincing “ soft ” Biden voters of the contrary , that his chances are hanging by a thread and depend on whether they show up or not .
Although that ’ s not really the headline in this series of tweets , is it ?
September ’ s $ 383 million fundraising haul is the new record for the most money ever raised @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , breaking Biden ’ s August record of $ 365 million .
( Trump hasn ’ t released his September numbers yet . )
Team Joe and the DNC had a combined $ 466 million in the bank at the end of August , which means they spent somewhere north of $ 400 million last month and still barely dented their cash reserves because of how much money is coming through the door .
They could actually increase their rate of spending over the next three weeks without raising another dime and still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Is there a secret ingredient to Biden ’ s blowout fundraising ?
I ’ m skeptical that Harrismania is driving a money tsunami after she finished far , far out of the running in the primaries .
She ’ s more exciting to black voters and lefties than , say , Amy Klobuchar would have been , but that ’ s probably as much as we can say for her .
The reason donations took off after she was chosen as VP was probably a function of timing .
Once the ticket is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ real.
” Voters start paying attention .
The more casual liberals began tuning into the race in August , the more annoyed they probably grew by Trump ’ s daily antics and the more they started shelling out cash for Sleepy Joe .
Contra O ’ Malley Dillon , a new NBC/WSJ poll this morning finds Biden with an 11-point lead nationally , 53/42 .
That shows a bit of improvement for Trump , who trailed by 14 in the last survey , but remains a ways away from a tight race .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 50 % say they are better off than they were four years ago , compared with 34 % who say they are worse off .
However , 58 % say the country is worse off than four years ago , compared with 38 % who say it is better off .
Moreover , more than 60 % of voters say the country is headed in the wrong direction .
The No .
1 election issue among those surveyed was the economy , and voters gave Republicans a 13-point advantage over Democrats as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pollsters said voters this election cycle don ’ t seem to be voting based on that issue alone… Democrat Peter Hart , who also worked on the survey , said voters were considering more than the economy .
More than half of those in the survey said they were concerned that Mr. Trump would divide rather than unite the country .
“ The 2020 presidential election finds voters looking to heal physically , economically and psychologically , ” Mr. Hart said .
That ’ s the second poll in the past week to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re better off now than they were four years ago , a metric that normally would cinch reelection for an incumbent president .
Some of that sentiment is doubtless due to the previous waves of fiscal stimulus by the feds in propping people up amid the COVID economic slowdown , but some of it is a reaction to how robust the economy was during the first three years of Trump ’ s presidency .
If his persona were even a little less Trumpy , especially with respect to how he talks about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ d be cruising to another term .
It ’ s almost an achievement for a president to be down double digits overall despite being *up* double digits on the “ better off now ” question .
Here ’ s the graph to think about today , the national average in polls of Trump vs. Biden .
Don ’ t focus on the margin here .
Just focus on Biden ’ s numbers .
He was at 49.4 percent on September 29 , the day of the first debate .
Two days later , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ percent .
He ’ s been above that mark every day since .
Of the last *20* national polls tracked by RCP , Biden has scored 50 percent or better in 17 of them .
( The three exceptions all come from the same pollster , The Hill/HarrisX , which nonetheless have him leading by five to seven points . )
Look back to 2016 and you ’ ll find that Clinton never touched 50 percent in the average after April .
The highest she reached after the convention was 49.0 for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s “ Access Hollywood ” debacle .
All of which is to say , Biden has a majority of the popular vote right now and Trump realistically can ’ t win reelection under those circumstances .
( If he won *all* remaining undecideds and turned it into a 51/49 national vote , I guess that could get him through the swing states . )
Something has to change , even if O ’ Malley Dillon is right that the race is tighter than the grimmest polls would indicate .

Up to you. You can choose to believe that this is true or you can choose to believe that it’s a lie being told by the campaign to scare Biden voters into not being complacent. The wider his lead in the public polls, the greater the incentive for lefties who are lukewarm towards him to stay home on November 3 in the belief that he doesn’t need their vote.
Which, frankly, may have been fatal to Hillary Clinton four years ago. Remember that some election models gave her a 99 percent chance of winning. If you were a progressive who didn’t like Clinton but really didn’t like Trump and you saw data nerds smugly assuring people that victory was in the bag, you felt comfortable skipping the election or casting a protest vote for Jill Stein. We all know how that worked out in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
The mushy pundit view of the true state of the race right now is “somewhere in between.” The polls *are* overstating Biden’s lead — he’s not going to win the popular vote by 12 points — but he’d get to 270 without much difficulty if the vote were held today. Jen O’Malley Dillon’s job is convincing “soft” Biden voters of the contrary, that his chances are hanging by a thread and depend on whether they show up or not.
Although that’s not really the headline in this series of tweets, is it?
Our success has been driven by our grassroots supporters. $203 million came from online donors. We had 1.1 million new donors last month — bringing the total to 5.5 million donors throughout this campaign. And as a result, we have $432 million in the bank. (2/?) — Jen O'Malley Dillon (@jomalleydillon) October 15, 2020
Now: Early voting is already underway in many states. Millions of voters have already cast their ballots. But there is still a long way to go in this campaign, and we think this race is far closer than folks on this website think. Like a lot closer. (4/?) — Jen O'Malley Dillon (@jomalleydillon) October 15, 2020
September’s $383 million fundraising haul is the new record for the most money ever raised in a campaign in a single month, breaking Biden’s August record of $365 million. (Trump hasn’t released his September numbers yet.) Team Joe and the DNC had a combined $466 million in the bank at the end of August, which means they spent somewhere north of $400 million last month and still barely dented their cash reserves because of how much money is coming through the door. They could actually increase their rate of spending over the next three weeks without raising another dime and still not be bankrupt by Election Day.
Is there a secret ingredient to Biden’s blowout fundraising?
Kamala Harris’s impact was astronomical. The Biden campaign raised an average of $8.1 million a day online in the last three weeks of August, $2.5 million more than the campaign’s previous biggest day. pic.twitter.com/g1NhfbuNGr — The New York Times (@nytimes) October 14, 2020
I’m skeptical that Harrismania is driving a money tsunami after she finished far, far out of the running in the primaries. She’s more exciting to black voters and lefties than, say, Amy Klobuchar would have been, but that’s probably as much as we can say for her. The reason donations took off after she was chosen as VP was probably a function of timing. Once the ticket is set, the campaign suddenly becomes “real.” Voters start paying attention. The more casual liberals began tuning into the race in August, the more annoyed they probably grew by Trump’s daily antics and the more they started shelling out cash for Sleepy Joe.
Contra O’Malley Dillon, a new NBC/WSJ poll this morning finds Biden with an 11-point lead nationally, 53/42. That shows a bit of improvement for Trump, who trailed by 14 in the last survey, but remains a ways away from a tight race. The most notable data point:
Some 50% say they are better off than they were four years ago, compared with 34% who say they are worse off. However, 58% say the country is worse off than four years ago, compared with 38% who say it is better off. Moreover, more than 60% of voters say the country is headed in the wrong direction. The No. 1 election issue among those surveyed was the economy, and voters gave Republicans a 13-point advantage over Democrats as the better economic manager. Yet, the pollsters said voters this election cycle don’t seem to be voting based on that issue alone… Democrat Peter Hart, who also worked on the survey, said voters were considering more than the economy. More than half of those in the survey said they were concerned that Mr. Trump would divide rather than unite the country. “The 2020 presidential election finds voters looking to heal physically, economically and psychologically,” Mr. Hart said.
That’s the second poll in the past week to find a majority of Americans say they’re better off now than they were four years ago, a metric that normally would cinch reelection for an incumbent president. Some of that sentiment is doubtless due to the previous waves of fiscal stimulus by the feds in propping people up amid the COVID economic slowdown, but some of it is a reaction to how robust the economy was during the first three years of Trump’s presidency. If his persona were even a little less Trumpy, especially with respect to how he talks about the pandemic, I think he’d be cruising to another term. It’s almost an achievement for a president to be down double digits overall despite being *up* double digits on the “better off now” question.
Here’s the graph to think about today, the national average in polls of Trump vs. Biden. Don’t focus on the margin here. Just focus on Biden’s numbers.
He was at 49.4 percent on September 29, the day of the first debate. Two days later, October 1, he crossed over 50 percent. He’s been above that mark every day since. Of the last *20* national polls tracked by RCP, Biden has scored 50 percent or better in 17 of them. (The three exceptions all come from the same pollster, The Hill/HarrisX, which nonetheless have him leading by five to seven points.) Look back to 2016 and you’ll find that Clinton never touched 50 percent in the average after April. The highest she reached after the convention was 49.0 for a single day, in mid-October following Trump’s “Access Hollywood” debacle. All of which is to say, Biden has a majority of the popular vote right now and Trump realistically can’t win reelection under those circumstances. (If he won *all* remaining undecideds and turned it into a 51/49 national vote, I guess that could get him through the swing states.) Something has to change, even if O’Malley Dillon is right that the race is tighter than the grimmest polls would indicate.


hotair--2020-10-15--Breaking: Twitter locked out Trump campaign's official account for promotin

Breaking: Twitter locked out Trump campaign's official account for promoting NY Post story; Update: House GOP want emergency Oversight hearing

Beyond stupid after what happened on social-media platforms yesterday , but elitist control freaks got ta freak out , it seems .
With just 19 days to go before an election , Twitter locked out the official Team Trump campaign account for , er … campaigning .
Twitchy put up the siren a short while ago after Team Trump officials complained on Twitter about the lockout : Remember when Jack Dorsey joined the leaders of other social media platforms in pledging to fight “ election interference ” ?
Good times , good times , Murtaugh told Fox News : “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ simple .
For Twitter to lock the main account of the campaign of the President of the United States is a breathtaking level of political meddling and nothing short of an attempt to rig the election , ” Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh told Fox News .
“ Joe Biden ’ s Silicon Valley pals are aggressively blocking negative news stories about their guy and preventing voters from accessing important information .
This is like something from communist China or Cuba , not the United States of America.
” “ This is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s re-election campaign 19 days from an election , plain and simple , ” Andrew Clark , Trump campaign Rapid Response Director told Fox News .
“ Twitter is interfering in the election and trying to stop the public from learning damning information about the Biden family ’ s corruption at all cost , but our campaign and our supporters will not be silenced.
” There are reasons to be skeptical about the NY Post story — lots of them , and I ’ ll have another in an upcoming analysis .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” despite what Biden ’ s allies and defenders claim , and even Twitter and Facebook acknowledge that .
They ’ re claiming that the story should be stopped from propagating on social media platforms until it has been authenticated , but that is a standard that seems to have materialized for this issue only .
Twitter took no action when false stories about Russia-gate propagated for years on its platform , including allegations based on the discredited Steele dossier , which looks now like actual election interference .
Yesterday ’ s brute-force @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including locking out the New York Post altogether , was bad enough .
Now Twitter wants to shut down Trump ’ s presidential campaign on a story that still could be accurate .
Have they shut down Biden ’ s campaign for propagating the Charleston smear or promoting other lies about Trump ?
No , nor should they .
If they are a platform rather than a publisher , that ’ s not their role .
You can bet after this move that Republicans in Congress will move a lot closer to Democrats @ @ @ @ @ @ @ media sites for much tighter regulation .
If yesterday ’ s response was “ not great , ” according to Jack Dorsey , today ’ s response is outright liability suicide .
Have fun without Section 230 , and thanks for ruining it for the rest of us .
Update : Even before this , Katie Pavlich reported that Republicans on the House Oversight Committee had requested an emergency hearing on Big Tech censorship : “ We respectfully request an emergency hearing on Big Tech ’ s repeated efforts to interfere in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ silencing of conservative viewpoints and censorship of news undermines the integrity of the 2020 election and harms Americans ’ First Amendment right to freedom of speech , ” a letter signed by all Republican members of the Committee states .
“ Shortly after the story was posted on Facebook , the company decided to “ reduce its distribution ” in an apparent attempt to limit access to the story .
Just as concerning , Facebook reportedly refused to answer basic questions about its decision .
Twitter also censored the article and warned users @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unsafe.
” Facebook and Twitter have done little to limit distribution of negative stories about President Trump or others who may share his political views .
This effort to selectively limit speech based on political affiliation is very concerning.
” “ Since the election is in only 19 days and other Big Tech platforms continuously limit speech based on political ideology , we must immediately hold a hearing to learn who are responsible for making these decisions and what policies enable Big Tech to selectively limit speech on social media .
In order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election by Big Tech , we request the Committee hold an emergency hearing on this important matter before November 3 , ” the letter continues .
You ’ d better believe that the Senate will follow suit , especially since Republicans control the agenda in the upper chamber .
Update : Right on time , here ’ s Ted Cruz pledging an investigation by the Senate Judiciary Committee :

Beyond stupid after what happened on social-media platforms yesterday, but elitist control freaks gotta freak out, it seems. With just 19 days to go before an election, Twitter locked out the official Team Trump campaign account for, er … campaigning. Twitchy put up the siren a short while ago after Team Trump officials complained on Twitter about the lockout:
Twitter has locked out @TeamTrump for posting video of clips of Joe Biden lying about never speaking to Hunter about foreign business deals. Includes snips of @nypost exposing the lies. Biden doesn’t dispute the authenticity of the docs. STILL protecting Biden from bad story. pic.twitter.com/VGJPYGiwlU — Tim Murtaugh (@TimMurtaugh) October 15, 2020
Remember when Jack Dorsey joined the leaders of other social media platforms in pledging to fight “election interference”? Good times, good times, Murtaugh told Fox News:
“This is election interference, plain and simple. For Twitter to lock the main account of the campaign of the President of the United States is a breathtaking level of political meddling and nothing short of an attempt to rig the election,” Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh told Fox News. “Joe Biden’s Silicon Valley pals are aggressively blocking negative news stories about their guy and preventing voters from accessing important information. This is like something from communist China or Cuba, not the United States of America.” “This is chilling censorship of a sitting President’s re-election campaign 19 days from an election, plain and simple,” Andrew Clark, Trump campaign Rapid Response Director told Fox News. “Twitter is interfering in the election and trying to stop the public from learning damning information about the Biden family’s corruption at all cost, but our campaign and our supporters will not be silenced.”
There are reasons to be skeptical about the NY Post story — lots of them, and I’ll have another in an upcoming analysis. But it has not been “debunked,” despite what Biden’s allies and defenders claim, and even Twitter and Facebook acknowledge that. They’re claiming that the story should be stopped from propagating on social media platforms until it has been authenticated, but that is a standard that seems to have materialized for this issue only. Twitter took no action when false stories about Russia-gate propagated for years on its platform, including allegations based on the discredited Steele dossier, which looks now like actual election interference.
Yesterday’s brute-force silencing of accounts discussing the story, including locking out the New York Post altogether, was bad enough. Now Twitter wants to shut down Trump’s presidential campaign on a story that still could be accurate. Have they shut down Biden’s campaign for propagating the Charleston smear or promoting other lies about Trump? No, nor should they. If they are a platform rather than a publisher, that’s not their role.
You can bet after this move that Republicans in Congress will move a lot closer to Democrats in looking at Twitter and other social media sites for much tighter regulation. If yesterday’s response was “not great,” according to Jack Dorsey, today’s response is outright liability suicide. Have fun without Section 230, and thanks for ruining it for the rest of us.
Update: Even before this, Katie Pavlich reported that Republicans on the House Oversight Committee had requested an emergency hearing on Big Tech censorship:
“We respectfully request an emergency hearing on Big Tech’s repeated efforts to interfere in the 2020 election. Big Tech’s silencing of conservative viewpoints and censorship of news undermines the integrity of the 2020 election and harms Americans’ First Amendment right to freedom of speech,” a letter signed by all Republican members of the Committee states. “Shortly after the story was posted on Facebook, the company decided to “reduce its distribution” in an apparent attempt to limit access to the story. Just as concerning, Facebook reportedly refused to answer basic questions about its decision. Twitter also censored the article and warned users that it is “potentially spammy or unsafe.” Facebook and Twitter have done little to limit distribution of negative stories about President Trump or others who may share his political views. This effort to selectively limit speech based on political affiliation is very concerning.” “Since the election is in only 19 days and other Big Tech platforms continuously limit speech based on political ideology, we must immediately hold a hearing to learn who are responsible for making these decisions and what policies enable Big Tech to selectively limit speech on social media. In order to prevent further interference in the 2020 election by Big Tech, we request the Committee hold an emergency hearing on this important matter before November 3,” the letter continues.
You’d better believe that the Senate will follow suit, especially since Republicans control the agenda in the upper chamber.
Update: Right on time, here’s Ted Cruz pledging an investigation by the Senate Judiciary Committee:


hotair--2020-10-15--The literally deadly results of "bail reform"

Last week , a 43-year-old Long Island man named William Farnum was being pursued in his vehicle by the NYPD .
The suspect eventually crashed into a utility pole .
When the police arrived on the scene and approached to investigate they discovered that Farnum had slit his own throat in the driver ’ s seat of his car and was dead .
The bad news didn ’ t end there , however .
When officers attempted to notify his next of kin they discovered two dead bodies in his home .
They are believed to be the remains of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reportedly killed by Farnum .
What ’ s really got the local police and Republican lawmakers up in arms about this situation is the fact that Farnum never should have been out on the streets when all of this was taking place .
Scrolling through the man ’ s recent history of engagements with law enforcement and the totality of his criminal record , he should have been behind bars .
But new bail reform laws in New York have tied the hands of judges and it was virtually impossible to keep Farnum @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hours at a time .
( Newsday ) Law enforcement unions Tuesday called for the repeal of state bail reform laws , citing the case of a Bellport man with a lengthy criminal record who killed himself after a brief pursuit , leaving police to then find the bodies of two relatives in his home… Farnum died by suicide after crashing his 2003 Honda Civic into a utility pole on Washington Avenue in East Patchogue on Oct. 7 .
When officers approached the vehicle , they found Farnum had slit his throat , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the scene .
Homicide detectives , attempting to notify the next of kin , entered Farnum ’ s home and found the body of a man and a woman , authorities said .
While police have yet to identify the victims , police union officials Tuesday said they were Farnum ’ s father and sister .
Democrats who support the bail reform laws are arguing that bail reform had nothing to do with how Farnum wound up dead on the side of the road .
But looking at his history , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ make .
At the time of the crash , Farnum was on parole after being released from prison last year after a four-year stretch for burglary and assault .
That was his third time going to prison .
Over the course of this summer , Farnum had been arrested four times .
While he was on parole .
He also had another outstanding warrant for felony grand larceny .
And every time the cops caught him and brought him before a judge he was set free again .
Granted , the majority of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for comparatively minor offenses , mostly having to do with property crimes .
But how many strikes does someone get in today ’ s criminal court ball game before you finally send them back to prison ?
Farnum was a career criminal who had been in trouble with the law pretty much since he became an adult .
And at the end of his time here on Earth , he allegedly upped the stakes considerably when he added homicide to his list of lesser crimes .
If anything good can come out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Farnum can serve as a warning for all of the liberals who want to “ Empty the Jails ” and do away with bail requirements for suspects .
Not everyone in jail is some “ misunderstood youth ” being subjected to “ racist police policies ” that was “ just getting their life together.
” Some people are behind bars because they are violent sociopaths who are not safe to leave wandering the streets among law-abiding citizens .
William Farnum should have been back in jail the first time he was arrested while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a big part of the reason we have the parole system .
It allows prisoners a chance to prove that they aren ’ t risks for recidivism .
Farnum failed that test miserably and repeatedly .
And now his father and his sister are dead and so is he .
If he ’ d been safely back behind bars , none of this would have had to happen .

Last week, a 43-year-old Long Island man named William Farnum was being pursued in his vehicle by the NYPD. The suspect eventually crashed into a utility pole. When the police arrived on the scene and approached to investigate they discovered that Farnum had slit his own throat in the driver’s seat of his car and was dead. The bad news didn’t end there, however. When officers attempted to notify his next of kin they discovered two dead bodies in his home. They are believed to be the remains of Farnum’s father and sister, reportedly killed by Farnum.
What’s really got the local police and Republican lawmakers up in arms about this situation is the fact that Farnum never should have been out on the streets when all of this was taking place. Scrolling through the man’s recent history of engagements with law enforcement and the totality of his criminal record, he should have been behind bars. But new bail reform laws in New York have tied the hands of judges and it was virtually impossible to keep Farnum locked up for more than a few hours at a time. (Newsday)
Law enforcement unions Tuesday called for the repeal of state bail reform laws, citing the case of a Bellport man with a lengthy criminal record who killed himself after a brief pursuit, leaving police to then find the bodies of two relatives in his home… Farnum died by suicide after crashing his 2003 Honda Civic into a utility pole on Washington Avenue in East Patchogue on Oct. 7. When officers approached the vehicle, they found Farnum had slit his throat, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Homicide detectives, attempting to notify the next of kin, entered Farnum’s home and found the body of a man and a woman, authorities said. While police have yet to identify the victims, police union officials Tuesday said they were Farnum’s father and sister.
Democrats who support the bail reform laws are arguing that bail reform had nothing to do with how Farnum wound up dead on the side of the road. But looking at his history, that’s a pretty tough argument to make. At the time of the crash, Farnum was on parole after being released from prison last year after a four-year stretch for burglary and assault. That was his third time going to prison. Over the course of this summer, Farnum had been arrested four times. While he was on parole. He also had another outstanding warrant for felony grand larceny. And every time the cops caught him and brought him before a judge he was set free again.
Granted, the majority of Farnum’s most recent arrests were for comparatively minor offenses, mostly having to do with property crimes. But how many strikes does someone get in today’s criminal court ball game before you finally send them back to prison? Farnum was a career criminal who had been in trouble with the law pretty much since he became an adult. And at the end of his time here on Earth, he allegedly upped the stakes considerably when he added homicide to his list of lesser crimes.
If anything good can come out of this tragic sequence of events, perhaps Farnum can serve as a warning for all of the liberals who want to “Empty the Jails” and do away with bail requirements for suspects. Not everyone in jail is some “misunderstood youth” being subjected to “racist police policies” that was “just getting their life together.” Some people are behind bars because they are violent sociopaths who are not safe to leave wandering the streets among law-abiding citizens.
William Farnum should have been back in jail the first time he was arrested while out on parole. That’s a big part of the reason we have the parole system. It allows prisoners a chance to prove that they aren’t risks for recidivism. Farnum failed that test miserably and repeatedly. And now his father and his sister are dead and so is he. If he’d been safely back behind bars, none of this would have had to happen.


hotair--2020-10-15--Are we seeing the beginning of a revolution in Thailand?

The government of Thailand declared a state of emergency in their capital last night .
It was caused by what ’ s being described as a student-led protest against the current administration and the monarchy .
Riot police were called out and arrests were made .
Is this starting so sound familiar to those of you who keep track of the news from America ’ s large cities these days ?
Well , before you get too excited , the way students in Thailand “ protest ” is a far cry from what BLM and Antifa get up to in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the government may also prove instructive .
So what sort of mayhem were the protesters engaged in ?
A group of them “ gathered ” outside the Prime Minister ’ s offices to call for reforms .
And the really shocking event came when a group of them “ heckled a royal motorcade.
” ( Associated Press ) Thai authorities declared a strict new state of emergency for the capital on Thursday , a day after a student-led protest against the country ’ s traditional establishment saw an extraordinary moment in which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pre-dawn declaration , riot police moved in to clear out demonstrators who after a day of rallies and confrontation had gathered outside Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha ’ s office to push their demands , which include the former general ’ s stepping down , constitutional changes and reform of the monarchy… The text of the emergency declaration said it was needed because “ certain groups of perpetrators intended to instigate an untoward incident and movement in the Bangkok area by way of various methods and via different channels , including causing obstruction @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of that emergency declaration certainly leaves much to be desired .
They ’ re accusing “ certain groups of perpetrators ” of launching an “ untoward incident ” in the capital using “ various methods and different channels.
” That could mean pretty much anything , couldn ’ t it ?
As far as the “ obstruction ” of the royal motorcade goes , it doesn ’ t sound as if they were obstructed much at all .
In reality , what the protesters did to get themselves in trouble was to fail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the pavement while the royals passed by .
A couple of them allegedly made “ rude gestures ” and “ heckled ” the monarchs .
Seriously ?
That ’ s what constitutes an emergency in your country ?
Come hang out in Minneapolis or Chicago for a few nights .
You ’ ll be pining for the good old days when “ heckling ” was the worst you had to worry about .
The government takes all of this seriously , though .
You can get fifteen years in prison for insulting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Maha Vajiralongkorn and his royal court or family members .
One of the protest leaders was arrested and managed to fire off a brief social media post saying he was being taken by helicopter to “ a northern city ” and had been denied access to an attorney .
Then he fell silent online .
As part of the emergency order , Thailand will now ban public gatherings of more than five people .
Any overt criticism of either the monarchy or the civilian government will result in arrests and possible imprisonment .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in nearly forty years and while I was there , I ’ ll confess that I never made it far outside of the Pattaya Beach area .
Being a young sailor out on liberty at the time , I don ’ t remember much of the experience .
But I do seem to recall it being a very “ orderly ” nation where roughhousing of any kind was frowned upon .
They take their law and order seriously there .
I ’ m not sure how far these protest groups will get in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be prepared to make some sacrifices for the cause .
Their government doesn ’ t mess around .

The government of Thailand declared a state of emergency in their capital last night. It was caused by what’s being described as a student-led protest against the current administration and the monarchy. Riot police were called out and arrests were made. Is this starting so sound familiar to those of you who keep track of the news from America’s large cities these days?
Well, before you get too excited, the way students in Thailand “protest” is a far cry from what BLM and Antifa get up to in our urban centers. And the response from the government may also prove instructive. So what sort of mayhem were the protesters engaged in? A group of them “gathered” outside the Prime Minister’s offices to call for reforms. And the really shocking event came when a group of them “heckled a royal motorcade.” (Associated Press)
Thai authorities declared a strict new state of emergency for the capital on Thursday, a day after a student-led protest against the country’s traditional establishment saw an extraordinary moment in which demonstrators heckled a royal motorcade. After the pre-dawn declaration, riot police moved in to clear out demonstrators who after a day of rallies and confrontation had gathered outside Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s office to push their demands, which include the former general’s stepping down, constitutional changes and reform of the monarchy… The text of the emergency declaration said it was needed because “certain groups of perpetrators intended to instigate an untoward incident and movement in the Bangkok area by way of various methods and via different channels, including causing obstruction to the royal motorcade.”
The wording of that emergency declaration certainly leaves much to be desired. They’re accusing “certain groups of perpetrators” of launching an “untoward incident” in the capital using “various methods and different channels.” That could mean pretty much anything, couldn’t it? As far as the “obstruction” of the royal motorcade goes, it doesn’t sound as if they were obstructed much at all. In reality, what the protesters did to get themselves in trouble was to fail to sit, kneel or lay prone on the pavement while the royals passed by. A couple of them allegedly made “rude gestures” and “heckled” the monarchs.
Seriously? That’s what constitutes an emergency in your country? Come hang out in Minneapolis or Chicago for a few nights. You’ll be pining for the good old days when “heckling” was the worst you had to worry about.
The government takes all of this seriously, though. You can get fifteen years in prison for insulting or even questioning the role of King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his royal court or family members. One of the protest leaders was arrested and managed to fire off a brief social media post saying he was being taken by helicopter to “a northern city” and had been denied access to an attorney. Then he fell silent online. As part of the emergency order, Thailand will now ban public gatherings of more than five people. Any overt criticism of either the monarchy or the civilian government will result in arrests and possible imprisonment.
I haven’t been to Thailand in nearly forty years and while I was there, I’ll confess that I never made it far outside of the Pattaya Beach area. Being a young sailor out on liberty at the time, I don’t remember much of the experience. But I do seem to recall it being a very “orderly” nation where roughhousing of any kind was frowned upon. They take their law and order seriously there. I’m not sure how far these protest groups will get in their efforts, but they had best be prepared to make some sacrifices for the cause. Their government doesn’t mess around.


hotair--2020-10-15--More NYPost: Hunter e-mails show big paydays from China

The same hard drive files that the New York Post claims came from Hunter Biden ’ s hard drive not only show connections between Joe Biden and the Ukraine , but also more about Hunter ’ s business in China .
The connections between the Biden family didn ’ t end with that already-infamous ride-hitching on Air Force Two in 2013 .
Starting in 2017 , Hunter was cutting shady deals worth millions — at least according to the data uncovered by the Post .
All the same caveats apply to this story as yesterday ’ s , of course @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of these files and especially the strange story of the laptop itself .
Skepticism should abound , but consider this a thought experiment .
Just how many stories based on the NYP ’ s claim to have Hunter Biden ’ s hard drive files can Twitter and Facebook spike ?
Let ’ s find out .
Hunter Biden pursued lucrative deals involving China ’ s largest private energy company — including one that he said would be “ interesting for me and my family , ” emails obtained by The Post show .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 13 , 2017 , with the subject line “ Expectations , ” included details of “ remuneration packages ” for six people involved in an unspecified business venture .
Biden was identified as “ Chair / Vice Chair depending on agreement with CEFC , ” an apparent reference to the former Shanghai-based conglomerate CEFC China Energy Co. His pay was pegged at “ 850 ” and the email also noted that “ Hunter has some office expectations he will elaborate.
” Be sure to read it all , even if you have to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do it .
It ’ s a fun read , but it ’ s not nearly as much of a bombshell as yesterday ’ s — even if one is inclined to trust that story or this one .
Yesterday ’ s exposé was all about Joe Biden , with a so-called “ smoking gun ” that contradicted his denials about involving himself in Hunter ’ s business .
The e-mails , if authenticated , would show that Joe was meeting with Burisma execs on Hunter ’ s behalf before intervening to get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe has consistently denied all of that , so if that e-mail is both real and accurate ( as opposed to fake but accurate ) , it would be — to use Joe ’ s term — “ a big f***ing deal.
” Today ’ s story , however , is all about Hunter ’ s business in China .
In fact , even if this all turns out to be authentic , Team Biden could turn it around on their critics .
All of the business described in this story took place @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe clearly had no juice in the government on which to trade .
“ Hunter ’ s business had nothing to do with his father , ” they could claim on this story , and hope people assume it to be the case with Ukraine as well .
Joe was already planning another presidential run , of course , but in 2017 there wasn ’ t any reason to think that the Democrats would only lock in on an old white man for their next nominee , either .
The only hint that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe is a cryptic reference to a shadow stakeholder called “ the big guy ” : In addition , the email outlined a “ provisional agreement ” under which 80 percent of the “ equity , ” or shares in the new company , would be split equally among four people whose initials correspond to the sender and three recipients , with “ H ” apparently referring to Biden .
The deal also listed “ 10 Jim ” and “ 10 held by H for the big guy ?
” Neither Jim nor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ further .
The NYP doesn ’ t extrapolate that out to Joe , and for good reason .
Even if this was on the level , a scheme like this would be unlikely to involve a man who might have to fill out financial disclosures and who was already making a fetish of releasing tax returns .
The “ big guy ” was likely someone else , if this is real in the first place .
Moreover , we ’ re already aware of Hunter Biden ’ s business efforts in China .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ads from Team Trump in this cycle , mainly last year in the primaries .
This might prompt some new ads on social media , assuming Twitter and Facebook have wised up about making Trump and his supporters into victims of corporate speech suppression since late yesterday .
We ’ ll soon find out , but if this is the NYP ’ s first follow-up to their bombshell yesterday , that first shot might also be the last that involves Joe directly .

The same hard drive files that the New York Post claims came from Hunter Biden’s hard drive not only show connections between Joe Biden and the Ukraine, but also more about Hunter’s business in China. The connections between the Biden family didn’t end with that already-infamous ride-hitching on Air Force Two in 2013. Starting in 2017, Hunter was cutting shady deals worth millions — at least according to the data uncovered by the Post.
All the same caveats apply to this story as yesterday’s, of course, including the timing of the discovery of these files and especially the strange story of the laptop itself. Skepticism should abound, but consider this a thought experiment. Just how many stories based on the NYP’s claim to have Hunter Biden’s hard drive files can Twitter and Facebook spike? Let’s find out.
Hunter Biden pursued lucrative deals involving China’s largest private energy company — including one that he said would be “interesting for me and my family,” emails obtained by The Post show. One email sent to Biden on May 13, 2017, with the subject line “Expectations,” included details of “remuneration packages” for six people involved in an unspecified business venture. Biden was identified as “Chair / Vice Chair depending on agreement with CEFC,” an apparent reference to the former Shanghai-based conglomerate CEFC China Energy Co. His pay was pegged at “850” and the email also noted that “Hunter has some office expectations he will elaborate.”
Be sure to read it all, even if you have to dodge the censors on social-media platforms to do it. It’s a fun read, but it’s not nearly as much of a bombshell as yesterday’s — even if one is inclined to trust that story or this one. Yesterday’s exposé was all about Joe Biden, with a so-called “smoking gun” that contradicted his denials about involving himself in Hunter’s business. The e-mails, if authenticated, would show that Joe was meeting with Burisma execs on Hunter’s behalf before intervening to get Ukraine’s chief prosecutor fired. Joe has consistently denied all of that, so if that e-mail is both real and accurate (as opposed to fake but accurate), it would be — to use Joe’s term — “a big f***ing deal.”
Today’s story, however, is all about Hunter’s business in China. In fact, even if this all turns out to be authentic, Team Biden could turn it around on their critics. All of the business described in this story took place after Joe left office, and when Joe clearly had no juice in the government on which to trade. “Hunter’s business had nothing to do with his father,” they could claim on this story, and hope people assume it to be the case with Ukraine as well. Joe was already planning another presidential run, of course, but in 2017 there wasn’t any reason to think that the Democrats would only lock in on an old white man for their next nominee, either.
The only hint that this might go up the chain to Joe is a cryptic reference to a shadow stakeholder called “the big guy”:
In addition, the email outlined a “provisional agreement” under which 80 percent of the “equity,” or shares in the new company, would be split equally among four people whose initials correspond to the sender and three recipients, with “H” apparently referring to Biden. The deal also listed “10 Jim” and “10 held by H for the big guy?” Neither Jim nor the “big guy” was identified further.
The NYP doesn’t extrapolate that out to Joe, and for good reason. Even if this was on the level, a scheme like this would be unlikely to involve a man who might have to fill out financial disclosures and who was already making a fetish of releasing tax returns. The “big guy” was likely someone else, if this is real in the first place.
Moreover, we’re already aware of Hunter Biden’s business efforts in China. It’s been the subject of ads from Team Trump in this cycle, mainly last year in the primaries. This might prompt some new ads on social media, assuming Twitter and Facebook have wised up about making Trump and his supporters into victims of corporate speech suppression since late yesterday. We’ll soon find out, but if this is the NYP’s first follow-up to their bombshell yesterday, that first shot might also be the last that involves Joe directly.


hotair--2020-10-16--Biden will "clarify" court-packing position before election... maybe

Will he or won ’ t he ?
Only his hairdresser knows .
( Younger readers can ask their parents/grandparents about that television commercial reference . )
During his town hall last night , George Stephanopoulos surprised me by actually asking Biden where he stood on packing the Supreme Court if Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed .
Previously , Biden had either flatly refused to answer or simply said that the voters “ don ’ t deserve to know ” his position before the election .
Those responses have gone over like a lead balloon , and even Biden ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mainstream media haven ’ t swallowed it .
I suppose the negative reactions have taken a toll on Team Biden because this time the former veep had a different answer .
But not all that different .
He still refused to say but indicated that he might let us know prior to the election .
But even then , it would depend on how the Senate GOP handles the rest of the confirmation process .
( National Review ) The Democrat said he is “ not a fan ” of court-packing but it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — not how he wins , but how it ’ s handled.
” “ If there is actually real live debate on the floor , if people are really going to be able to have the time to go through this , ” he said .
“ I don ’ t know anybody who ’ s gone on the floor who has been a controversial justice in terms of fundamentally altering the makeup of the court that ’ s gone through in a day kind of thing.
” “ It depends on how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Biden was all over the place during his answers , looking totally at sea .
To his credit , Stephanopoulos pressed Uncle Joe further , asking if the voters didn ’ t have a right to know his position before they voted .
Biden responded , “ They do have a right to know where I stand and they ’ ll have a right to know where I stand before they vote.
” We can take that portion of the exchange in one of two ways .
Either Biden was totally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be too clever by half .
Giving him the benefit of the doubt , we should note that Biden only said that voters will “ have the right to know where I stand ” before they vote .
It doesn ’ t mean they will know… only that they will have the right to .
Then he immediately backpedaled again and added that it still depends “ on how they handle this.
” Of course , all of this is relatively meaningless at this point .
Many of the country ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sent their mail-in ballots .
If this court-packing question was part of their decision on who to vote for , it ’ s too late for them .
And by the time we know how the Senate “ handled ” the Barrett confirmation , it will be only a few days before the election , if that .
Biden is clearly aware of this , or at least he should be , so this exchange at the town hall was nothing more than political theater .
This has been a self-inflicted wound for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue to rest when the discussion first arose and picked a side .
I was expecting something along the lines of saying that it wouldn ’ t be his first choice but if court-packing was the “ will of the people ” as expressed through their elected representatives , he wouldn ’ t stand in the way .
That would have been a fairly safe answer .
But instead , he chose to be sneaky about it in a painfully obvious effort to avoid ticking off either side too much .
That ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I seriously doubt the issue is going to change too many votes anyway .

Will he or won’t he? Only his hairdresser knows. (Younger readers can ask their parents/grandparents about that television commercial reference.) During his town hall last night, George Stephanopoulos surprised me by actually asking Biden where he stood on packing the Supreme Court if Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed. Previously, Biden had either flatly refused to answer or simply said that the voters “don’t deserve to know” his position before the election. Those responses have gone over like a lead balloon, and even Biden’s obedient cheerleaders in most of the mainstream media haven’t swallowed it.
I suppose the negative reactions have taken a toll on Team Biden because this time the former veep had a different answer. But not all that different. He still refused to say but indicated that he might let us know prior to the election. But even then, it would depend on how the Senate GOP handles the rest of the confirmation process. (National Review)
The Democrat said he is “not a fan” of court-packing but it “depends on how this turns out — not how he wins, but how it’s handled.” “If there is actually real live debate on the floor, if people are really going to be able to have the time to go through this,” he said. “I don’t know anybody who’s gone on the floor who has been a controversial justice in terms of fundamentally altering the makeup of the court that’s gone through in a day kind of thing.” “It depends on how much they rush this,” he said.
Biden was all over the place during his answers, looking totally at sea. To his credit, Stephanopoulos pressed Uncle Joe further, asking if the voters didn’t have a right to know his position before they voted. Biden responded, “They do have a right to know where I stand and they’ll have a right to know where I stand before they vote.”
We can take that portion of the exchange in one of two ways. Either Biden was totally confused and babbling or he was trying to be too clever by half. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, we should note that Biden only said that voters will “have the right to know where I stand” before they vote. It doesn’t mean they will know… only that they will have the right to. Then he immediately backpedaled again and added that it still depends “on how they handle this.”
Of course, all of this is relatively meaningless at this point. Many of the country’s voters are already voting early or have sent their mail-in ballots. If this court-packing question was part of their decision on who to vote for, it’s too late for them. And by the time we know how the Senate “handled” the Barrett confirmation, it will be only a few days before the election, if that. Biden is clearly aware of this, or at least he should be, so this exchange at the town hall was nothing more than political theater.
This has been a self-inflicted wound for Biden. He could have put the issue to rest when the discussion first arose and picked a side. I was expecting something along the lines of saying that it wouldn’t be his first choice but if court-packing was the “will of the people” as expressed through their elected representatives, he wouldn’t stand in the way. That would have been a fairly safe answer. But instead, he chose to be sneaky about it in a painfully obvious effort to avoid ticking off either side too much. That’s backfired on him entirely, though I seriously doubt the issue is going to change too many votes anyway.


hotair--2020-10-15--Dr. Fauci: Just skip the family Thanksgiving celebration this year, m'kay?

Dr. Fauci is issuing a warning as we head into the holiday season this year – Thanksgiving will look different than other years .
Or , he insists , it should .
We aren ’ t finished with making personal sacrifices because of the coronavirus pandemic and Thanksgiving turkey with our extended families is another sacrifice to be added to an already long list .
Remember back in March when we were asked to halt our regular lives for just a short time , just long enough to flatten the curve and allow hospitals and medical facilities to keep pace @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Yeah , good times .
Easter passed , Memorial Day weekend passed , the Fourth of July passed , and then Labor Day weekend passed .
With each , we were warned to stay diligent , stay away from crowds , and protect ourselves from the plague .
The goal of just flattening the curve turned into waiting until there are effective therapeutic drugs and a vaccine .
Progress is being made on both those fronts but we aren ’ t quite there yet so our individual isolation measures are still in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the holidays .
We know that Halloween is mostly canceled everywhere so the next holiday on the calendar is Thanksgiving .
Planning menus and family get-togethers are part of what makes the holiday celebration special .
It is a uniquely American holiday .
Yes , I know that Canada does their own Thanksgiving but that doesn ’ t count .
I ’ m kidding .
Kinda .
Macy ’ s has canceled its annual parade and now Dr. Fauci wants you to cancel your annual big family feast .
Fauci said Wednesday that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for White House Coronavirus Task Force , has been out in the field looking at the increase in COVID-19 cases in households .
He has decided to only spend Thanksgiving with his wife , not his adult children who all live in different states .
“ She ’ s done an amazing job of traveling to different states trying to get a feel for what ’ s going on , ” he told CBS News anchor Norah O ’ Donnell .
Fauci said Birx told him : ” Household transmission now is assuming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Don ’ t assume that because you ’ re in your own home with your own family that you ’ re not going to spread infection.
” Fauci said his three children have decided not to travel .
“ Thanksgiving is going to look very different this year , ” he said .
“ I would love to have it with my children , but my children are in three separate states throughout the country and , in order for them to get here , they would all have to go to an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ All three of them want very much to come home for Thanksgiving.
” “ People should be very careful and prudent about social gatherings , ” he added .
“ You may have to bite the bullet , and sacrifice social gatherings unless you ’ re pretty certain that the people you ’ re dealing with are not infected , or have very recently tested , or they ’ re living a lifestyle in which they don ’ t have any interaction with anybody except you and your family.
” Don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ your household you ’ ve been hunkering down with will not infect each other .
But , in order to protect everyone , cancel the traditional gatherings this year .
Everyone should just stay home and not travel , even adult children who would travel home for dinner with mom and dad .
That means no Thanksgiving visits with the grandkids , too .
Fauci says it ’ s a necessary sacrifice this year .
The way things are going , we have no indication that the same recommendation will not be made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concerned about an increase in cases as the weather changes and people socialize more indoors than outdoors .
Fauci says your family celebration could turn into a superspreader event .
The indoor air circulating among everyone , including those who may have flown in for the holiday , could produce a hotbed for virus transmission .
If you do go ahead and invite people who do not live in your home to Thanksgiving dinner , Fauci says your guests should be screened .
This is particularly important for members of the family who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their age or their underlying condition .
I think about all the older people who now live alone and are not able to visit their families because they are in a high-risk group .
Spending the holidays isolated away from their loved ones sounds cruel but it is more understandable than isolating grown children from their parents who may not be in a high-risk group .
The CDC is enlisting the help of governors to get the word out .
The CDC has published guidelines for celebrating the holidays through the end of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thanksgiving won ’ t be the last holiday we are going to be asked to cancel .
Christmas is the next that will be on the list of things 2020 will ruin .

Dr. Fauci is issuing a warning as we head into the holiday season this year – Thanksgiving will look different than other years. Or, he insists, it should. We aren’t finished with making personal sacrifices because of the coronavirus pandemic and Thanksgiving turkey with our extended families is another sacrifice to be added to an already long list.
Remember back in March when we were asked to halt our regular lives for just a short time, just long enough to flatten the curve and allow hospitals and medical facilities to keep pace with their incoming patients without being overwhelmed? Yeah, good times. Easter passed, Memorial Day weekend passed, the Fourth of July passed, and then Labor Day weekend passed. With each, we were warned to stay diligent, stay away from crowds, and protect ourselves from the plague. The goal of just flattening the curve turned into waiting until there are effective therapeutic drugs and a vaccine. Progress is being made on both those fronts but we aren’t quite there yet so our individual isolation measures are still in place.
People are looking ahead to the holidays. We know that Halloween is mostly canceled everywhere so the next holiday on the calendar is Thanksgiving. Planning menus and family get-togethers are part of what makes the holiday celebration special. It is a uniquely American holiday. Yes, I know that Canada does their own Thanksgiving but that doesn’t count. I’m kidding. Kinda. Macy’s has canceled its annual parade and now Dr. Fauci wants you to cancel your annual big family feast.
Fauci said Wednesday that Dr. Deborah Birx, the response coordinator for White House Coronavirus Task Force, has been out in the field looking at the increase in COVID-19 cases in households. He has decided to only spend Thanksgiving with his wife, not his adult children who all live in different states.
“She’s done an amazing job of traveling to different states trying to get a feel for what’s going on,” he told CBS News anchor Norah O’Donnell. Fauci said Birx told him: ”Household transmission now is assuming a greater element of the transmissibility. Don’t assume that because you’re in your own home with your own family that you’re not going to spread infection.” Fauci said his three children have decided not to travel. “Thanksgiving is going to look very different this year,” he said. “I would love to have it with my children, but my children are in three separate states throughout the country and, in order for them to get here, they would all have to go to an airport and get on a plane. All three of them want very much to come home for Thanksgiving.” “People should be very careful and prudent about social gatherings,” he added. “You may have to bite the bullet, and sacrifice social gatherings unless you’re pretty certain that the people you’re dealing with are not infected, or have very recently tested, or they’re living a lifestyle in which they don’t have any interaction with anybody except you and your family.”
Don’t assume that you and the people in your household you’ve been hunkering down with will not infect each other. But, in order to protect everyone, cancel the traditional gatherings this year. Everyone should just stay home and not travel, even adult children who would travel home for dinner with mom and dad. That means no Thanksgiving visits with the grandkids, too. Fauci says it’s a necessary sacrifice this year. The way things are going, we have no indication that the same recommendation will not be made next year, too. He is concerned about an increase in cases as the weather changes and people socialize more indoors than outdoors. Fauci says your family celebration could turn into a superspreader event. The indoor air circulating among everyone, including those who may have flown in for the holiday, could produce a hotbed for virus transmission.
Speaking on CBS News, Fauci also expressed concern about people going indoors to socialize due to the colder weather, and said that 50,000 daily new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. are “an unacceptably high level.” The doctor added, “In the fall you’re seeing people doing more things indoors. That’s always a bad situation to be in when you’re dealing with a respiratory infection.”
If you do go ahead and invite people who do not live in your home to Thanksgiving dinner, Fauci says your guests should be screened. This is particularly important for members of the family who might be at a risk because of their age or their underlying condition. I think about all the older people who now live alone and are not able to visit their families because they are in a high-risk group. Spending the holidays isolated away from their loved ones sounds cruel but it is more understandable than isolating grown children from their parents who may not be in a high-risk group.
The CDC is enlisting the help of governors to get the word out.
“What we’re seeing as the increasing threat right now is actually acquisition of infection through small household gatherings,” Redfield said to state governors during a call. “Particularly with Thanksgiving coming up, we think it’s really important to stress the vigilance of these continued mitigation steps in the household setting.”
The CDC has published guidelines for celebrating the holidays through the end of the year. This tells us that Thanksgiving won’t be the last holiday we are going to be asked to cancel. Christmas is the next that will be on the list of things 2020 will ruin.