It is history that teaches us to hope

The Other McCain spent Christmas Eve with a lengthy post.
Read the whole thing and you will find wisdom at the end.
It is history that teaches us to hope.

Climategate carol

Somehow I forgot to post this last year.

How did we have Christmas without this parody?

. 

Al Gore speaks, no one's listening 

In the lane, lights are glistening 

Oh what a sight 

With houses really bright

Seeing all the Christmas lights are on 

 Gone away is good science 

Here to stay, blind allegiance 

We're singing our song 

Yet lights come on 

Look how all the Christmas lights are on 

On computers we can cook some data 

then pretend that it is warmer now 

They'll ask: Are you sure? 

We'll say: You know, man 

And here's the hockey stick that we have found 

 Later on, we'll conspire, 

With warnings, that are dire 

Make the people afraid 

We'll pass cap and trade 

No more seeing Christmas lights turned on 

 On computers we can cook some data 

And say skeptics are just circus clowns 

We'll have lots of fun with our bad data 

Until our own emails knock us down. 

 When we speak, ain't it thrilling 

People's hearts, they are chilling 

We'll frolic and play, the socialist way, 

No more seeing Christmas lights turned on

Mikes rule, sharks drool

Have you heard there's too many Mikes on Shark Week?
They forgot me.
I'm waiting for my call.

Great TV moments

My cable package recently added NHL network to my lineup.
So tonight, I watched a Zamboni tow a broken-down Zamboni off the ice.
That's entertainment.

Undefeated team watch

The 1972 Miami Dolphins can celebrate tonight - the last undefeated team of the 2022 season has suffered their first loss.
Washington couldn't give Miami a loss in Super Bowl VII, but it did against the Eagles Monday night.
Pop the champagne again, Dolphins.

Don't mess with Virginia's next governor

Winsome Sears stated her opposition to Donald Trump's current path on Thursday.
It's not about what you did the past.
It's what you've done lately.
Trump's perennial opponents often focus on his past deeds.
It's the future that matters.
Sears sees that. And we'll see a lot more of her as the 2025 gubernatorial campaign gets going.

Biden presidency died in Kabul

Salena Zito notes four major points on President Biden's road downhill toward major defeats in Tuesday's election.
The biggest?
The bug-out from Afghanistan.
Nothing much can be said about the disaster, and Biden's team doesn't make leaving Afghanistan a big part of the election strategy.
American lives lost.
Afghan hopes destroyed. 
All thanks to Joe Biden.
The people remember his failure.

End of "Codify Roe v. Wade"

In only a few days, Democrats will lose a talking point.
No more "Codify Roe v. Wade."
To codify Roe v. Wade, Democrats have to hold their 50 seats and oust some Republican Senators.
From recent polling, that combination looks doubtful.
Sure, they could revive the talking point for 2024.
But if Republicans gain the majority this year, the 2024 Senate lineup looks better for Republicans gaining seats than Democrats getting back to 50 or over.
Republicans might even think about getting to 60. Then the new talking point will be "Filibuster-proof abortion ban."

14 years down, more to come

The input of this blog as slowed, but it's now been 14 years since the start.
What a wild roller coast ride.
Looks like 2022 will be a good November.
More interesting topics to come.

Inflated hopes

Poor Democrats.
Trying to minimize the impact of inflation by claiming other countries are having the same problem.
So?
We'll fire our current politicians and put in people with different ideas.
It's up to other countries to take care of their own inflation problems.

For Democrats, Woe-vember is coming

Three weeks until Election Day.
The numbers keep getting worse for Democrats and the campaign season winds down.
Democrats thought Roe-vember would lead to victory.
Looks like the calendar has Woe-vember next instead.

Undefeated team watch

We're in week 4 of the NFL season, and only one team has made it this far unscathed - the Philadelphia Eagles.
Who expected that when the season began?
The 1972 Miami Dolphins are watching.

Would Allahpundit approve?

Checking HotAir's headlines, I saw an interesting link and clicked.
It was by Da TechGuy
Good to see a link to a solid conservative friend.
Allahpundit has moved on, and Captain Ed is in charge at HotAir.
And he said change was in the air.
My new mission is to position Hot Air for the midterms and the 2024 election cycle as the, well, hottest place to find conservative perspectives, trenchant analysis, and aggregation of both breaking events and sharp takes in the commentariat.

We'll all benefit from the wisdom of Da TechGuy.

We'll talk ill of you, alive or dead

Uju Anya was first out of the box with an insulting tweet about Queen Elizabeth II just before she died.
It brought much discussion and pushback.
She keeps pushing.
“Speak no ill of the dead” is a weapon that’s leveled against the oppressed to silence them, to lionize oppressors, and to sanitize their history.
Thanks to her tweet, people will speak ill of her for many years to come.

Here he comes, on the FBI beat

Looks like the FBI is going to learn not to monkey around with the Monkees.
Micky Dolenz, the last surviving member of the pre-fab four from the 1960s, has sued the FBI to get any files on the group released.
What did the FBI collect on the Monkees at the peak of their popularity?
When they had a lot of a peel.

Does anybody know what time it is

The Other McCain talks about his visionary beer drinking buddies.
While nostalgia for the politics of yesteryear is generally misguided, nevertheless history offers inspiring examples of leaders who emerged in moments of crisis, men who knew What Time It Is and didn’t mind being called “extremists” for speaking the unpopular truth. Deo Vindice.

We don't want her either

In a few days, Wyoming voters can oust Liz Chaney from Congress.
Her opponents has an idea for her future.
Not in my part of Virginia, please.

Democrats for Mountain Valley pipeline

HotAir found a good reason for Joe Manchin to support the Democrats' Build Back Better (lite) bill.
It pushes the approval and construction of the Mountain Valley pipeline for natural gas.
Virginia Democrats hate that pipeline, and already ended plans for a pipeline through Augusta County.
But it will help Manchin's West Virginia voters.
Manchin has been trying to get the Mountain Valley Pipeline finished for well over a decade. His version of the proposed bill would give that to him and he could bring home all of the jobs and opportunities (such as LNG exports) that would come with it to his constituents. But this still isn’t close to being a done deal.
We'll see if progressives can swallow this part of the bill.

Recession now or recession later

The White House is scrambling to deny this week that the country is in recession, pending Thursday's report.
They claim our current economy is not like a usual recession.
But they'd rather wait three months, and have a recession declared weeks before Election Day?
Seems more likely to doom Democrats.

Last-minute voters will be paying attention when the economy is then officially called in recession.

Burning down the house

The Green New Deal isn't happy with Joe Manchin.
They'd rather burn money than fossil fuels.

Democratic dreaming

I see Democrats reacting to the recent Supreme Court cases with their wish list.
This November, we can elect more Democrats, abolish the filibuster and make the changes we want.
It's like planning on getting out of debt by winning the lottery.
Ain't gonna happen.

Out of the mouths of babes

 From Powerline's week in pictures.

Thinking of Aunt Mary

With the reversal of Roe v. Wade, I thought about my Aunt Mary.
She was involved in the pro life movement from its start in the 70s.
She worked hard for the cause, and the hard work paid off at the Supreme Court.

Democrats are sunk

We have to wait for five months to be sure, but Democrats seem doomed in the 2022 elections.
Each time the price of gas goes up, another Democrat can plan on losing.
It doesn't matter what the price is in other places. 

Or that President Biden doesn't determine prices. 

Democrats can't avoid the blame.

Priorities

 Via Instapundit, who got it from a Facebook feed.

Is it okay to watch NHL tonight?

ESPN has Game 5 of the Rangers vs. Lightning series Thursday at 8 p.m.
At the same time the January 6 committee meets.
Is it okay to watch NHL?
Liz Cheney fusses that Fox isn't showing the committee when the other networks are.
Does the committee think giving the public no further options benefits their cause?

"You'll watch our information and you'll like it."

No thanks.

Only gas prices matter

Blue Virginia runs a silly column bound to doom any Democrats who listen - explaining how it's a dishonest debate over gas prices.
Guess they haven't left the house in months.
The columnist plays the inflated price comparison - it was worse in 2008.
Forgetting that Republicans lost big that November after the price of gas spiked.
What will they say when the average price of gas stops $5.37/gallon - their inflation adjusted standard.
The second point is people had good feelings about the future economy - in 2021. About two dollars per gallon ago.
The latest surveys won't be so optimistic.
And don't blame President Biden and don't talk about drilling more.
Even if drilling more gave us low prices just three years ago.
Pipelines and drilling now won't drop prices now - it takes 16 months. Like the 16 months where we could have been drilling, but instead the Biden administration threw up regulations and shut down planned pipelines.
With prices so high, it's the Democratic election machine that's out of gas.

I'm still standing

Wombat's current project is cleaning up the links at The Other McCain.
Proud to have been on the blogroll since 2009.

They replaced fetus with abort

Do you play Wordle?
The guy who invented it had longer range vision than the New York Times.
Today's Wordle - scheduled months ago - was to be FETUS.
Last week, the Times looked ahead and decided they'd better change that.
Which raises questions.
The Times bought the game in January. That's three months to review future games for words that might cause a problem. 
Why didn't they catch it sooner? 
How far in the future had the inventor gone when he sold the game?
Using fetus as an answer is bound to create controversy if you're doing something on the internet nobody reads. Much less a game you find becoming popular as you share it.
But don't worry, Wordle fans.
The Times aborted fetus before most people played today's game.

Their bench was aborted

There were millions of abortions in the 1970s and 80s.
Those aborted children, if given a chance, would be in their prime adult lives today.
Think Democrats could have found a decent presidential candidate out of all those?
Instead, they're stuck with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

The Roe Effect is real.

Egregiously wrong

The leaked draft of the Dobbs ruling is an egregious wrong, but if it ends the egregious wrong of abortion, it brings the good news a few weeks early.
Many people worked many years to see this day - overturning Roe v. Wade.

Don't say pray

 It's interesting to me - after weeks of blasting Florida's bill they call "Don't say gay" - that liberals are struggling with the Supreme Court arguments about teacher's leading prayer during public school activities.
They want "Don't say pray."
In prayer cases, the teachers praying forces unbelievers to join in against their will.
But in the Florida situation, the same liberals don't see the teachers forcing students to discuss being transgender against their will.
The teachers are supportive of student needs when it comes to transgender, but threatening in religious prayer.
For consistency, if you think there shouldn't be prayer in schools, then there shouldn't be transgender discussion in schools.
The authority figures may pressure young minds - even unknowingly - toward their view.
Those opposing Florida's law must not remember what it's like to be age 5-8. Who argued with their teacher in those years? You listened and followed their instruction.
It's been 50 years since I was in second grade at a parochial school, and my classmates from then still remember how the nun roosted the roost. 
Students who can be taught about transgenderism can deal with a praying teacher.
If you give up talking transgenderism in schools, we can talk about what limits you want on prayer.

Need some bunny to love me

Does Joe Biden have a friend?
Or can anybunny tell him where to go?

Pete Gillen lives

 Rex Chapman knows that - now.

Hey Russia, you're losing

Russia is trying to block bad news from getting to its people about the invasion of Ukraine.
Maybe a blog post will get past the censors.
"Hey Putin, you're losing."

Blame to go around

We've learned lots about Ukraine in the last week.
And how many actors on all sides made mistakes.
That Ukraine has allowed itself to be used as a pawn against a powerful neighbor is in part the fault of Kyiv’s reckless and corrupt political class. But Ukraine is not a superpower that owes allies and client-states judicious leadership—that’s the role of the United States. And in that role, the United States has failed Ukraine. More broadly, the use of Ukraine as a goad against enemies domestic and foreign has recklessly damaged the failing yet necessary European security architecture that America spent 75 years building and maintaining.

Great Eight scores again

Alex Ovechkin offered his opinion on the Russian attack on Ukraine.
Putin needs to listen to his great wisdom.

Help Hunter's friends

Want a slogan that really won't help the Ukraine effort?
But Ukraine could probably use the money that gas company paid Hunter Biden.

Loss of a blogging friend

The Other McCain notes the passing of Bob Belvedere, the pen name of a Massachusetts man who spread his knowledge through the blogosphere in the Obama era.
While The Camp of the Saints remains on the internet, I found he included me in an Obamacare roundup in 2010, and several other links

The masks will drop

Democrats celebrated a court victory Friday about Governor Youngkin's order on mask mandates.
Youngkin had reason to celebrate a court victory Monday.
Time is on Youngkin's side, as those seeking to keep mask mandates in schools watch multitude jurisdictions bringing their masking to an end.
The masks will drop.

Read the election results

Governor Glenn Youngkin went shopping in Alexandria for a photo op for his plan to cut grocery taxes.
Another customer was upset - where's your mask?
"Read the room."
Read the election results, lady.

Can we borrow your dog?

West Virginia governor Jim Justice made headlines by lofting his dog into the air as a speech ended - and suggesting the critics "kiss her hiney."
Can Virginia's Glenn Youngkin borrow the dog for his critics?

Looks like they made it up

Earlier today, the news came out Barry Manilow wanted him music off Spotify.
Manilow came out hours later, saying the idea wasn't from him.
Looks like some rumormonger is going to have a cold Weekend in New England.

Wanted: Justice for the losing side

Justice Stephen Breyer reportedly plans to retire soon.
Democrats are looking for a replacement, someone who can be on the bench for 30 years or more.
Someone who won't be tired of always being on the losing side.
Good luck finding the right person - to continually lose to the right.

Hole in their wall

Virginia Democrats claim the Senate will be their brick wall to stop Gov. Glenn Youngkin's agenda.
They forgot about Chap Petersen.
On Monday, Chap Peterson, a moderate Democrat who joined with Republicans to force school re-opening last year, said in an email to the Fairfax County Parents Association that Fairfax’s school board “must define an ‘off ramp’ for mandatory masking. That means plainly stated metrics as well as a final deadline (e.g. Valentine’s Day). They should announce that immediately. The forced masking policy is going to end very soon, i.e. in a few weeks.

Quite a large hole in the Democrats' wall.

Youngkin shows the way

Governor Youngkin's start has impressed Kurt Schlichter.
He won, against all odds. And he did it not by tacking to the squishy center and trying to please the Washington Post, but by ignoring the consultant consensus that he should disregard issues the people were concerned about and focus on the same losing platform that these hacks haven’t changed since 2005. And then he followed up by keeping his word.

Parents rule, bureaucrats drool

Gov. Youngkin gives parents a choice.
Bureaucrats don't like that.
Thanks to the governor, parents get their say next week.

The Blue wail

Democrats are having a hard time understanding transfer of power to Republicans.
Let the 2023 campaign commercials right themselves.

It's going to be a fun four years

Blue Virginia collects the reactions of Virginia Democrats to Gov. Glenn Youngkin's first day in office. 
It's going to be so enjoyable to read their reactions as the days go on.

Democratic vandalism in Richmond

Gov. Glenn Youngkin arrived at the governor's mansion before taking office at noon.
Outgoing governor Ralph Northam handed him a credit-card style door key.
With holes from a dog bite.
Instead of a brass key to a door lock, outgoing Gov. Ralph Northam handed the incoming governor a plastic card – punctured by tooth marks from his Labrador puppy, Pearl.
Democrats trying to prevent transfer of power.
Start spreading the news.

If Virginia Democrats did so well, why'd they lose?

Virginia now has a Republican majority in the House.
And Saturday, a Republican takes over as governor.
As Democrats leave power, they keep heaping praise on their work the past two years.
But really.
If Democrats did what the people wanted, why did they get voted out?
Their opinions don't match the facts on the ground.

Looking forward to Jan. 6, 2023

Democrats are looking back to last year.
Republicans should be looking forward to next year.
When January 2023 rolls around, Republicans should take the House.
Nancy Pelosi - or her replacement - will hand the gavel over to (likely) Kevin McCarthy.
The investigations of Democratic malfeasance can begin.
There's plenty of targets available.
Let the Democrats have their fun, looking backward.
The future belongs to Republicans.

The saddest holidays

Most people get off work New Year's Day.
But it's really a lousy holiday.
Just like Labor Day.
Both are holidays that mark the end of a good season.
Even football can't save them.
The good things of the past year get wiped away. 

I saved a lot of money at my local Food Lion - now my number is back to zero.

We've got the long slog of winter weather in January and February to make it through until it starts to warm in March.

And we have the sunlight we need after work hours.