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JUNE 17,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE UNITED STATES FLASHES WEAKNESS – FROM THE HILL:   North Korean leader Kim Jong Un told the country's government on Thursday it needed to be prepared for confrontation with the United States.  Kim “stressed the need to get prepared for both dialogue and confrontation, especially to get fully prepared for confrontation” with the U.S. during a ruling party meeting, Korean Central News Agency reported, according to The Associated Press.  North Korea needs to “protect the dignity of our state and its interests for independent development and to reliably guarantee the peaceful environment and the security of our state,” Kim said, according to the state media outlet.  The comments come after the Group of Seven (G-7) countries — the U.S., United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan — pushed North Korea earlier this week to abandon its nuclear and missile program, AP noted. The countries encouraged the Asian country to come to the negotiating table and respect human rights conditions, according to the wire service.  Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in May there was no "grand bargain" to get North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program.  North Korea realizes it is no longer dealing with the tougher Donald Trump.  So it flexes its muscles, knowing no one will do a thing. 

WISE DECISION – FROM FOX:   The Supreme Court sided unanimously with a Catholic foster agency in a dispute against the city of Philadelphia over whether it should be banned from participating in the city's foster program because it excludes same-sex couples.  The group, Catholic Social Services (CSS), claimed that "Philadelphia’s attempts to exclude the Catholic Church from foster care" violated the First Amendment. Lawyers for the city, meanwhile, said that CSS "lacks a constitutional right to demand that DHS offer it a contract that omits the same nondiscrimination requirement every other FFCA must follow when performing services for the City."  In a 9-0 ruling, the justices sided with Catholic Social Services.  "CSS seeks only an accommodation that will allow it to continue serving the children of Philadelphia in a manner consistent with its religious beliefs; it does not seek to impose those beliefs on anyone else," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in a majority opinion. "The refusal of Philadelphia to contract with CSS for the provision of foster care services unless it agrees to certify same-sex couples as foster parents cannot survive strict scrutiny, and violates the First Amendment."  Freedom of religion was our first freedom.  It has been under attack in recent years.  The unanimous Court today restored some of the balance.  Religious beliefs must, within reason, be accommodated, which is the true American way.  The quote from Chief Justice Roberts gets it exactly right.

June 17, 2022      Permalink

THE DEATH OF A CITY – OVERNIGHT:  Really, an American tragedy.  The slow death of Portland, Oregon, a beautiful city being run by the wrong people.  And no one outside Portland seems to care.  From Fox: 

All 50 of Portland police’s highly trained rapid response unit voted unanimously to resign on Wednesday during a union meeting in response to the recent indictment of Officer Corey Budworth for allegedly assaulting a photographer with his baton as an overnight riot broke out last August.

"Unfortunately, this decorated public servant has been caught in the crossfire of agenda-driven city leaders and a politicized criminal justice system," the Portland Police Association said in an initial statement Tuesday after a Multnomah County grand jury indicted Budworth on one count of fourth-degree assault related to an incident that occurred on Aug. 18, 2020.

That night, according to the police union, a group of about 200 demonstrators – many equipped with tactical helmets, faces covered, and armed with a variety of weapons – descended on the Multnomah Building in southeast Portland. Multiple dumpsters were set on fire, buildings were defaced, and windows were broken. A riot soon was declared at the planned event after someone from the crowd launched a Molotov cocktail into the Multnomah Building, setting it ablaze.

"After nearly 75 consecutive nights of violence, destruction, and mayhem, a small group of RRT (Rapid Response Team) officers—including Officer Budworth—were again tasked with dealing with the riot," the Portland Police Association said. "Per PPB Command Staff orders, RRT officers cleared the rioters from the area to allow the Fire Bureau to extinguish the blaze. But the rioters were not satisfied."

According to the union, rioters re-amassed and began marching back toward the building. As the Rapid Response Team was working to clear the area, Officer Budworth "was forcefully knocked to the ground" and officers deployed pepper spray and less lethal munitions as the crowd grew more aggressive.

Several rioters interfered with an officer attempting to place one person under arrest.

According to the union, rioters re-amassed and began marching back toward the building. As the Rapid Response Team was working to clear the area, Officer Budworth "was forcefully knocked to the ground" and officers deployed pepper spray and less lethal munitions as the crowd grew more aggressive.

Several rioters interfered with an officer attempting to place one person under arrest.

"RRT officers, including Officer Budworth, used their Police Bureau-issued batons to try and stop the crowd’s criminal activity," the union’s description of events continued. "Per his training and in response to the active aggression of a rioter interfering with a lawful arrest, Officer Budworth used baton pushes to move a rioter, now known to be Teri Jacobs, out of the area."

COMMENT:  Read the rest.  The officer minimally struck Jacobs, a political activist, who made a federal case out of it.  Being Portland, the authorities believed the rioter over the officer, and now the officer stands indicted. 

This is what happens when ideology, not competence, runs a city. 

America is not an ideological country.  It is an idealistic country, but the left could never understand, or care about, the distinction.  I have no idea where we'll get competent police officers in some cities, given that the war on police is a sacred leftist cause.  Portland is violent night after night.  The city puts up with it because the governing ideology demands that rioters be seen as victims of an unjust society.  No other explanation is accepted.

June 17, 2022      Permalink

JUNE 16,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT: 

THE HEAT IS ON – FROM DAILY MAIL:   Russia and China are flexing their military might with provocative war games, stepping up the pressure on U.S. President Joe Biden as he meets with G7 allies in the UK and faces Vladimir Putin in Geneva.  In recent days, both Beijing and Moscow have goaded Biden with aggressive military exercises, with Chinese warplanes encroaching on Taiwan and Russian bombers flying off Hawaii.  On Tuesday, the U.S. Navy responded with its own show of force, saying an aircraft carrier strike group led by the USS Ronald Reagan had entered the South China Sea to conduct maritime security operations and strike exercises.  The Navy said the strike group is committed to upholding U.S. security agreements with 'regional allies', as well as demonstrating the capability of forward-deployed naval forces to quickly respond to 'any contingency across the region.'   The U.S. carrier group's presence in the disputed South China Sea is sure to infuriate Beijing, which claims the entire vast waterway as its own.  The South China Sea is pivotal to the free flow of commerce that fuels the economies of those nations committed to international law and rules based order,' said Rear Adm. Will Pennington, commander of the Ronald Reagan carrier strike group, in a statement.   'It is both a privilege and a pleasure to work alongside our allies, partners, and joint service teammates to provide full spectrum support to key maritime commons and ensure all nations continue to benefit from a free and open Indo-Pacific region,' he added.   Do not underestimate the importance of this story.  While Americans debate whether critical race theory should be taught to teenagers, our opponents are happily planning our defeat in the next conflict.

SOMETHING ELSE TO WATCH CAREFULLY – FROM FOX:    Israel’s Defense Forces launched a counterattack into Gaza after a balloon attack sent incendiary devices floating into southern Israel.  The counterstrike, which happened Tuesday evening in the U.S. and early Wednesday morning local time, targeted Hamas military compounds, according to the IDF.  The targets were used by Hamas' Khan Yunis and Gaza Brigades for "terror activities," according to the IDF.  "The Hamas terror organization is responsible for all events transpiring in the Gaza Strip, and will bear the consequences for its actions," the military said in a statement. "The IDF is prepared for any scenario, including a resumption of hostilities, in the face of continuing terror activities from the Gaza Strip."  Authorities on both sides said there were no injuries, the Times of Israel reported.  The violence comes just three weeks after a cease-fire halted 11 days of fighting that marked the worst clashes between the IDF and Hamas militants since a small-scale war in 2014.
The balloon attacks sparked nearly two-dozen fires.  There is a new Israeli government in power, and it's likely that Hamas, and its Iranian masters, will test that government's resolve. 

June 16, 2021      Permalink

BIDEN THE PERFORMER GETS PANNED – OVERNIGHT:    Okay, so he's not Lincoln.  Okay, so he's not Reagan.  Okay, so he's not Laurence Olivier.  The problem is, what is President Biden?  No one can quite figure it out, but a tiger on the world stage he is not. 

He refused to hold a joint press conference with Vladimir Putin after their summit conference today, and maybe that's all to the better.  Putin, about whom nothing good can be said, at least cuts a dynamic figure.  From Daily Mail: 

President Joe Biden said he stressed the importance of free speech during his summit with Vladimir Putin before taking questions from another list of pre-approved reporters in Geneva on Wednesday.  

In his description of their sit down, Biden emphasized the American commitment to human rights and said: 'I also raised the ability of Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty to operate, and the importance of a free press and freedom of speech'. 

'I'll take your questions and as usual, folks, they gave me a list of the people I'm going to call on,' he then said at his press conference after finishing talks with the Russian president. In a separate press conference, Putin picked which reporters he would be taking questions from.

Biden also mistakenly referred to Putin as Trump, before quickly correcting himself, and ended the series of  questions by shouting at CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins. 

She yelled out a question asking why he was so confident the Russian strongman would change his behavior, given his denials and his history.  

'I’m not confident I’ll change his behavior. What do you do all the time?' he sneered. 

Biden walked up to the reporter, with his suit jacket off on an unusually hot day, and accused her of not knowing her business.  

'When did I say I was confident?  I said … What I said was – let’s get it straight,' Biden said. 'I said what will change their behavior is if the rest of the world reacts to them and it diminishes their standing in the world. I’m not confident of anything. I’m just stating the facts.'

The latest remarks come days after he said he would 'get in trouble' with his staff if he didn't take questions from certain reporters.  

During his stern comments on Wednesday, Biden says he warned Putin that Russian cyber attacks on 'critical' U.S. infrastructure would draw a serious American response – and told his counterpart just how harmful a cyber attack might be on an oil pipeline that is the lifeline of the Russian economy.

Biden threatened retaliation and made his comment publicly even as he denied making any kind of a 'threat' in his meetings with the Russian president as they discussed ransomware attacks that shut down Colonial pipeline and has other U.S. and multinational businesses on edge.  

In separate, back-to-back press conferences after their sit down, both leaders expressed satisfaction with the outcome of their meeting and described their conversations in positive terms. 

COMMENT:  The general feeling is that Biden got nothing from Putin, and Putin got a chance to strut on a world stage, without too much opposition.  Advantage:  Putin. 

Not exactly a Reagan outcome.

June 16, 2021      Permalink