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JUNE 27,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

OUR NATIONAL DISGRACE – FROM FOX:    The National Archives' task force on racism claimed in a little-noticed report to the U.S.’s top librarian that the Archives' own Rotunda – which houses the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights – is an example of "structural racism" and that the Founding Fathers and other White, historically impactful Americans are portrayed too positively.  The report was completed in April and released this month but has so far flown under the media radar. The task force claims that structural racism "unequivocally impacts" how National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) employees interact with each other, customers and the historical records themselves.
Some examples of "structural racism" were provided in the summary of the report, including "legacy descriptions that use racial slurs and harmful language to describe BIPOC communities," which includes actual racial slurs alongside terms such as "elderly," "handicapped" and "illegal alien." Additionally, the report categorized the National Archives' Rotunda as another example of "structural racism" as it "lauds wealthy White men in the nation's founding while marginalizing BIPOC [Black, Indigenous and other People of Color], women, and other communities."  Well, that's that.  I say, abolish the Constitution and turn the National Archives into a psychological welfare center for anyone who feels oppressed.  That is the right thing to say, isn't it, Comrades?

REMINDER OF A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP – FROM THE JERUSALEM POST:   US F-35B fighter jets flew combat missions over the Middle East striking ISIS targets across the region earlier this week after taking off from a British aircraft carrier, marking the first time the US military has done so since the Allies teamed up in World War II.  The stealth jets from the 617 Squadron RAF (The Dambusters) within the UK's Carrier Strike Group 21 are flying missions alongside US Marine Corps warplanes as part of the UK's Operation Shaders and US Operation Inherent Resolve - focused on targeting ISIS targets and strongholds across the Middle East.  The international duo is expected to visit at least 40 countries aboard the new HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier - the Royal Navy's largest ship (65,000 tons) in its fleet, embarking on its first operational deployment - during its seven-month mission, passing through the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the waters of the Pacific Ocean surrounding Japan and South Korea...The last time US aircraft had flown combat missions from a British foreign aircraft carrier was during a campaign in the South Pacific in 1943, stationed aboard the HMS Victorious in the heat of World War II.  The U.S. Navy sometimes refers to the Royal Navy as "the senior service."  We welcome the reunion.

June 27, 2021       Permalink

SUDDEN ESCALATION – OVERNIGHT:  We are reminded that foreign policy has a nasty way of catching our attention, even when we don't welcome it.  From Fox: 

The U.S. military has conducted defensive precision airstrikes against three facilities near the Iraq-Syria border region Sunday evening.

According to Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby, the facilities are used by several Iran-backed militia groups engaged in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) attacks against U.S. personnel and facilities in Iraq, including Kata'ib Hezbollah (KH) and Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS).

"As demonstrated by this evening's strikes, President Biden has been clear that he will act to protect U.S. personnel. Given the ongoing series of attacks by Iran-backed groups targeting U.S. interests in Iraq, the President directed further military action to disrupt and deter such attacks," Kirby added. "The United States took necessary, appropriate, and deliberate action designed to limit the risk of escalation - but also to send a clear and unambiguous deterrent message."

A U.S. defense official with knowledge of the strikes told Fox News that US Air Force F-15 and F-16s were used in the operation. The strikes took placed at approximately 6 p.m. eastern time.
At least one facility used by Iran’s militia forces to launch and recover drones was destroyed, the official added. Recent strikes by the crude drones have targeted Americans in Baghdad and Erbil in northern Iraq.

The official said he does not expect "a lot of casualties" from the Iranian-backed forces because of the time of the strike.

All U.S. jets returned to base without a problem, the official added.

COMMENT:  On this we support the president.  It must be made clear to Iran that their behavior is unacceptable, and that we will take action to counter it.  There may well be a need for further strikes like this, and then we will see whether Mr. Biden has the support of his own party in his acts of deterrence, or whether he will have to depend on Republican support.  My bet is on the latter.

June 27, 2021       Permalink

JUNE 26,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

LATEST POLLING – PROBLEMS FOR BIDEN – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:   The Biden administration is failing big time with its inability to control illegal immigration, adding it to one of several issues that could doom Democrats if left unchecked.  In a new Harvard/Harris poll, an overwhelming 80% said that illegal immigration is a serious issue and one that needs more attention than President Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris are giving it.  What’s more, 68% said that signals from Biden’s White House are encouraging illegal immigration and 55% believe that former President Trump’s border closing policies should have been left in place.  Pollster Mark Penn sized up the issue this way: “Immigration is boiling up as an issue.”  Add it to increasing voter concerns about inflation, taxes, the Critical Race Theory controversy, and this could be a summer of woe for Democrats. “These are not good numbers for Democrats,” said an adviser to House Republicans.  The fears of illegal immigration were a key part of Penn’s analysis of his June poll for Harvard’s Center for American Political Studies and the Harris Poll.  The president himself remains reasonably popular, scoring in the low fifties in most approval polls,  But his policies are increasingly seen as far too leftist for the public to bear.  Those policies, not the president's likability, will be the center of next year's elections, rapidly coming upon us.  Dems have reason to be concerned.  This is not a far-left or far-right country.  Go too far and the public generally pushes back toward the center.

June 26, 2021       Permalink

STORY OF AN OUTRAGE – OVERNIGHT:  Polls show that Americans are starting to focus on crime as one of the most important issues in the 2022 midterms.  And no wonder.  The takeover of the criminal-justice system in large cities by leftist philosophers has had a devastating effect on law enforcement and public safety.  Consider this latest example, from the New York Post: 

The gangbanger accused of opening fire on a Bronx street inches away from two terrified children was inexplicably set free after a knifepoint robbery — and critics on Saturday demanded answers about why he was sprung in the first place.

Michael Lopez was charged in the Manhattan robbery in January 2020, a crime he allegedly committed while on parole for other offenses.

“Somebody has to answer for this guy,” said Joseph Giacalone, an adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a former NYPD sergeant.

Lopez, 27, was arrested Friday on attempted murder and other charges in the shocking June 17 sidewalk shooting, which was captured on video seen around the world.

Lopez allegedly kept gunning for his target, who trampled a 13-year-old girl and her 5-year-old brother out to get candy at a nearby bodega. The children were miraculously not injured.
But over a year before, in January 2020, Lopez was charged in connection with a Manhattan robbery, a crime he allegedly committed while on parole for other offenses.

Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Janene Carter said in court Friday that Lopez was on parole for three felony convictions and had been charged in two pending cases, including “a violent felony offense, robbery in the first degree and a misdemeanor.”

She also noted that Lopez had previously failed to appear in court on two recent occasions.

A spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office did not return a request for comment.
After Lopez’s arrest, Police Commissioner Dermot Shea wondered why he was out at all.

“I think the main question we should all be asking is how does an individual released to parole get arrested for knifepoint robbery and is walking around on the streets? And is that justice for those little kids?” the commissioner said Friday.

The NYPD tells the state Division of Parole when a parolee is arrested and they are responsible for putting people back in prison if warranted, the top cop noted.

Police Commissioner Dermot Shea was stunned how alleged shooter Michael Lopez was never locked up following his knifepoint robbery.

A spokesman for the Parole Division did not immediately return a request for comment Saturday.
Giacaolone said bench warrants should have been issued for Lopez after he missed court dates in his previous arrests.

“This is a prime example of somebody who shouldn’t have been out in the street. When are the state representatives who passed all these reforms going to be called on the carpet to answer for them? Those little kids are lucky to be alive,” he added.

COMMENT:  Five years ago New York was the safest large city in America, the result of work done by Mayors Rudy Giuliani and Mike Bloomberg.  Today it is a shooting gallery.  The sense of safety is gone.  Street crime is way up, as are violent demonstrations that result in large property crimes.

Kind of like the old days, the 1970s.

June 26, 2021       Permalink