Final post of 2016

I have been bogged down lately at the job, even traveled this past week to the thriving metropolis that is Tulsa, OK. As such, posting has been lite for the past 10 days.

So. 2016, huh? An equally historic and bizarre year. For me personally, I had a great year! While I had some personal challenges (4 months unemployed in the spring being the most notable), I felt it was a blessed year in terms of the strengthening of my faith as well as making some new friendships. Also, I produced 271 posts on this blog, which is the second biggest annual total in this site's 12-year history.

Anyhow, I'm not nearly an ambitious enough writer to compile "Year in Review" posts, so I will look back at 2016 on tomorrow's radio show.

With that, I wish you all a blessed 2017 and look forward to continuing to share my perspectives on current events via this blog. Thanks as always for indulging me in this crazy little hobby called "blogging."


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Together again

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Left-ism: Still a mental disorder

Donald Trump is still four weeks away from officially becoming President of the United States yet many kook leftists are convinced he's already inflicted serious damage to America. Unfortunately Trump's family is now in the proverbial cross hairs.

Ivanka Trump and her three children were harassed by a fellow passenger Thursday on a flight out of New York.

An “out-of-control passenger” was “verbally berating” the 35-year-old daughter of President-elect Donald Trump and “jeering” at her children, according to TMZ.

“Your father is ruining the country,” the JetBlue passenger said to Trump, the entertainment news site reports.

“Why is she on our flight? She should be riding private,” the man, who was apparently holding his own kid in his arms, then exclaimed.

Right? Kinda tough to fluff that ol' narrative of the Trumps being elitist and out of touch with regular Americans when Ivanka and her family are sitting in the coach section of a cross country flight. Don't the Trumps realize they can sit in first class apart from the hoi polloi?

Another passenger on the flight out of John F. Kennedy International Airport told the site that Trump “ignored the guy and tried distracting her kids with crayons” before the man was escorted off the flight. As he was removed, the man reportedly yelled, “You’re kicking me off for expressing my opinion?”

Opinion? Yeah, see the jig is up with that one. Your husband kinda gave away your motive via his Twitter account.

Deleted but... pic.twitter.com/WQo4UBD3Zh

— ScottInSC (@ScottInSC) December 22, 2016

While no self-respecting leftist web sites, publications, etc. would even think to justify the behavior of that insufferable jerk, they sure as heck don't dole out the rhetorical flogging reserved for unruly Trump supporters.

Isn't it amazing how fast the word "harassed" disappears from their vocabulary. pic.twitter.com/CqKyCU8jH3

— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) December 22, 2016

And finally, it's extremely gratifying to show leftists how utterly ridiculous they are by using their own chanting points against them.

So is harassing a woman on a JetBlue flight to explain what you don't like about her father the ultimate mansplaining or nah?

— Peter Hasson (@peterjhasson) December 22, 2016

Indeed.

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Douche-splaining

Apparently MTV scrounged up some condescending, douchey millennials to lecture white guys on how to "do better" in 2017.

Uh, yeah, thanks for the recommendations you impudent little twerps. However, I think I'll stick to my initial 2017 resolution, which is to drop about 15-20 pounds. So if it's any consolation, I will become less of a "white guy".....physically that is.

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Gotta have faith

Does anyone recall the 1986 Geraldo Rivera TV special The Mystery of Al Capone's Vaults? The premise of Rivera's show was to provide background of Chicago's most notorious gangster (Capone) and the hotel where he conducted business before his incarceration. When this hotel was to be renovated in the 1980s, some secret corridors were discovered. After about an hour and 50 minutes of Rivera et al sharing anecdotes about Capone, the show was to culminate with the underground tunnels being excavated to reveal....what? Perhaps dead bodies?!?! Valuables?!?! Upon the vaults being opened, I believe an empty bottle was all that was found. A woefully disappointed Rivera confirmed there was nothing salacious. This was a veritable 4th of July fireworks show whose grand finale was a mere bottle rocket.

I bring this all up because the hype surrounding the Electoral College casting its votes for President was almost as insufferable yet also yielded little drama.

Donald Trump won the Electoral College vote on Monday and secured his election as the 45th president of the United States, as the latest – and perhaps last – stop-Trump movement failed to gain traction in state capitals (sic).

A fervent push by anti-Trump forces to persuade electors to defect had turned the normally mundane civic procedure into high drama.

But Trump easily surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to win, as representatives tabbed to cast ballots in accordance with their states’ Nov. 8 decision mostly adhered to the election results. After all the states had voted, Trump finished with 304 votes and Clinton had 227.

Texas put Trump over the top, despite two Republican electors casting protest votes.

What's most hilarious is that Mrs. Clinton had more faithless electors than Trump.

One of the biggest deviations was in Washington state, where three electors voted for Colin Powell and one voted for “Faith Spotted Eagle;” the remaining eight went to Clinton, the state’s winner.

How ironic that one faithless elector in Washington voted for someone named Faith.

I digress.

Celebrities made public appeals to electors to use the arcane process to upend Trump’s victory, as some Democratic electors tried to persuade their Republican counterparts to defect. Reports that U.S. intelligence officials determined Russia interfered in the election to boost Trump – findings disputed by Trump himself – only fueled efforts to wield the Electoral College vote as a political circuit-breaker.

As electors met, thousands of protesters descended on state capitals Monday in one last push to convince Trump voters to change their minds.

In Arizona, dozens of protesters gathered outside the meeting site, marching around the Capitol mall and carrying signs that said, "Stop Trump." More than 200 demonstrators gathered at Pennsylvania's Capitol, chanting, "No treason, no Trump!"

When Republicans were shellacked in 2012, the RNC compiled an "autopsy report" to determine what went wrong and thus devise a strategy to win future elections. The Dems, however, can't seem to be bothered with such introspection. The phrase "Dead, but too dumb to lie down" seems apropos here.

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No hope

At age 44 in 2008, Michelle Obama proclaimed she was proud of her country for the first time in her adult lifetime. Her husband of course was elected President several months later and was reelected in 2012. In what was her final interview as First Lady, Mrs. Obama reveals that apparently the statute of limitations on pride in her country expires next month as she and her husband leave the White House for good.

With fewer than 40 days remaining as first lady, Michelle Obama is continuing to reflect on the legacy she and President Obama will leave after having occupied the White House for the last eight years. In a new interview with Oprah Winfrey, the first lady addressed the election outcome and suggested that the U.S. is entering a time of hopelessness.

“We are feeling what not having hope feels like,” Obama told Winfrey in response to a question about whether President Obama had achieved the “hope and change” he promised while campaigning in 2008. As she often did while campaigning for Hillary Clinton, she didn’t mention President-elect Donald Trump by name. But she alluded to the contrast many in the country are feeling since he won the election last month. “We feel the difference now,” she said, noting that her husband had succeeded in keeping his campaign promise of fostering hope. “Hope is necessary. It’s a necessary concept,” she elaborated. “And Barack didn’t just talk about hope because he thought it was a nice slogan to get votes. He and I and so many believed that … what else do you have if you don’t have hope? What do you give your kids if you can’t give them hope?”

While I've strongly disagreed with Mrs. Obama's political leanings, I felt she, for the most part, handled being First Lady with dignity and decorum. But I have to admit that reading this excerpt of her interview with Oprah makes me quite angry. No, it's not because of the passive aggressive swipe at the incoming Trump administration. As I've said many times on this blog, I'm not all that enthused about the new occupants of the White House myself. But to suggest that the only way to have "hope" or give your kids "hope" is based upon who is President of the United States is stunningly arrogant. I submit that putting faith in a political philosophy (i.e. left-ism) run by those who believe they're our betters will always leave folks disappointed.

The insinuation that people in this country should now feel hopeless because Obama is leaving office is also an insult to those who voted for Trump and another validation as to why they supported him. I wonder how the First Lady would respond to those who felt hopeless during her husband's administration. After all, many Americans felt their standard of living decreased due in large part to Barack Obama's policies. And many were made to feel ashamed of freely practicing their religion or legally owning a gun due to the condescending tone struck by Mr. Obama. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that Oprah really didn't approach that line of inquiry.

Bottom line is if you believe the only way to feel "hope" is based upon who is sitting in the Oval Office, I contend that you are doing life incorrectly.

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They want to see my Fairlane up on blocks......

The temperature likely won't get above zero, so I'll have to bring the heat on today's edition of The Closer. The one-hour festivities begin at 2:00 PM Central Time.

No guests scheduled, so I will be taking a look at the leftist push for GOP electors to not vote for Trump. I'll also weigh in on allegations of Russian cyber attacks as well as recent profiles in leftist "fake news."


So please call (651) 289-4488 if you'd like to weigh in on any of the topics I plan on addressing. You can also text comments/questions to (651) 243-0390.

You can listen live in the Twin Cities at AM 1280 on your radio dial. In and out of the Minneapolis-St Paul area, you can listen to the program on the Internet by clicking this link, or check us out via iheart radio. If you're unable to tune in live, please check out my podcast page for the latest show post.

Even though I have a face for radio, there is a UStream channel where you can watch the broadcast if you so desire. Check it out here.

And if you're so inclined, follow along on Twitter at #narn or "Like" our Facebook page.

Until then.....

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But it's *our* fake news

Several hours into CNN's Election Night coverage last month, lefty commentator Van Jones resigned himself to the fact that Donald Trump would be elected President. Upon that realization, Jones claimed to have received text messages from some Muslim friends who apparently were fearful they would be forced to leave America. Said fears stemmed from Trump's pledge to temporarily disallow immigration of Muslims into the U.S. until a more stringent vetting process of Syrian refugees could be put into place. While Trump didn't convey the most articulate portrayal of his position, the media fluffed a narrative that almost seemed to suggest he would revoke the U.S. citizenship of anyone practicing the Muslim faith, to say nothing of allowing Muslims to immigrate here.

So when unverifiable affronts have occurred against Muslims since Trump's election, the alleged incidents are seemingly beyond reproach. Just over a week ago, newly elected Minnesota state rep Ilhan Omar (DFL-Minneapolis) claimed a Washington D.C. taxi cab driver called her "ISIS" and threatened to remove her hijab. However, she took to social media to recount the incident as opposed to immediately alerting D.C. authorities or the cab company. She has since indicated that once she returned to Minneapolis she got around to filing a report. Am I saying Omar's story is untrue? Not necessarily. But I agree with my friend Walter Hudson that it doesn't quite pass the proverbial smell test. 

Less than a week before Omar's alleged incident, there was an 18-year Muslim woman who claimed she was accosted by three intoxicated white guys. The young woman, Yasmin Seweid, also said the men yelled "Trump!" while also attempting to rip the hijab from her head. Once again, many media outlets ran with the story while also stoking fear that this will become commonplace in "Trump's America." 

Alas, the Sewied incident has recently been revealed to be a hoax. 

On Wednesday, two weeks after the alleged attack, Seweid was arrested on misdemeanor charges of filing a false report and obstructing government administration, New York Police Department spokesman Adam Navarro told The Washington Post.

Navarro said he could not comment on the circumstances surrounding Seweid’s arrest. But the Daily News and DNAinfo, citing anonymous police sources, reported that Seweid admitted to police she fabricated her story because she was having family troubles at home.

Interesting that many of the same outlets who were all indignant over the epidemic of "fake news" were so quick to run with this story despite there being little to no verifiable evidence. Stephen Miller of HeatStreet noticed this, too.

(S)ince Donald Trump’s election, social media users have been bombarded by a finger wagging media about a flood of fake news and misinformation spreading online which, the media claims. But the media isn’t taking a long hard look at themselves and asking how and why “fake news” has gained the audience it has. With little to no discretion and all too eager to push anti-Trump narratives, these news organizations hit the publish button on Seweid’s story with little to no hedging that, at that point, all they had was her account. And its faith in the story dies hard. When Buzzfeed published the story of Seweid’s arrest on Wednesday, the headline read “Woman Arrested For Allegedly Making Up Story of NY Subway Attack by Trump Supporters”, carrying more skepticism in the fact that she was arrested for fabricating the story, than Buzzfeed gave to its original report.

These editors, apparently not convinced that Donald Trump provides enough real life clickbait content, rushed off to prove their desired narrative of rampant Islamophobia and hate crimes. If newsroom editors want to lament the spread of fake news, perhaps they can start with how they and their journalists handled the Yasmin Seweid case. Likewise with rape victims in the viral media cases of Emma Sulkowicz, the University of Virginia Greek system or Duke Lacrosse, all this does is undermine their own narratives and most importantly real victims.

Maybe mainstream news outlets and networks will figure this out sometime into President Donald Trump’s second term.

Dunno about that. After all, hubris is a helluva drug.

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Our betters still know better, or something

I've never heard of Duane Townsend, a "life-long resident of Detroit, MI" and supposed "experienced observer" of politics. But if Mr. Townsend is a microcosm of today's "progressive" movement, the 2016 election cycle may only be a beginning of that movement's repudiation.

He starts off his piece at The Hill with digs at those in "flyover land" who overwhelmingly voted for Donald Trump.

A flyover state is the huge region between the coasts. As opposed to the eastern seaboard, northern post-industrial states and Pacific Ocean states. They’re overwhelmingly Republican, stanchly (sic) conservative, regressive right wing, evangelical Christian and working class, well, the loudest, most ill-informed of them are. The term wasn’t commonly used in a political manner until recently with the emergence of the Tea Party and the election of Obama.

A visit to Wichita, Kan., isn’t on the bucket list of many Americans. Whereas most travelers fly over Fayetteville, Ark., and Springfield, Mo. They’re not destination spots. The flyover state gripe has nothing to do with the tourist industry of Oklahoma or Nebraska or Iowa. This is about their perceived feelings of abandonment and disrespect from their government. Never mind they’ve elected local, state and national representatives that should reflect their values and interests.

There are very few things which come across as more insanely arrogant than someone projecting what is in someone else's "interests." And while "flyover residents" may be justified in feeling disrespect from our government, abandonment is, to a certain extent, what is actually sought. It is the working class's desire for government to cease with burdensome regulations that are crippling their livelihoods as well as the unprecedented overreach into their health insurance. And since the Federal government has gotten its mitts into the student loan industry, working class Americans are further hampered from saving the ample amount of money for their kids' post high school education.

I'm not going to Fisk the whole thing, so definitely read it in its entirety if you have built up a strong tolerance for unearned condescension. However, there are a couple of other paragraphs I want to specifically address.

(Trump voters are) delusional in their belief that their views are more important, more valid, more ethical, and more patriotic than any other groups. They claim American Christian values, home, God and country. White values. Any dissenting viewpoints are taken as literal acts of war.

Anyone who questions the narrow vision of Middle America Christian values, being forced on 325 million people of multiple cultures, religions, no religion, and a mosaic of ethnicities, is deemed ungodly and un-American.

It’s clear cultural fascism.

Aside from that being patently false, it's classic lefty projection. There have been numerous examples of people of the Christian faith being persecuted by the "Gay-stapo" and other "progressive" groups for choosing not to violate their collective conscience (e.g. declining to cater same-sex weddings). Again, the vast majority of us Christians seek to live our faith and thus have no interest in making our fellow Americans acquiesce via legislative fiat.

Mr. Townsend ends this screed as it began: with insufferable smugness.

To Trump voters: You allowed your bigotry and anger at the system to be cynically exploited yet again, by regressive, wealthy demagogues. I have little sympathy for you. I for one will not be contorting myself to "give Trump a chance" or seek common ground with you.

You need healing, not allies.

Apparently Mr. Townsend preferred that this country would have elected a regressive, wealthy demagogue (i.e. Hillary Clinton) who was firmly entrenched in "the system." Sucks to be him.

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Deferring to the village

In the aftermath of Donald Trump being elected President, a lot of lefty parents had downright freak outs. Perhaps the most common phrase uttered was "How do I explain this to my children?!?!?!"

When I initially heard that query, the first thought which came to my mind was what in the world were you telling the kids before Election Day? It's not like a President of the United States has this unchecked power which allows him/her to run roughshod over America by implementing whatever policies he/she so desires (To be fair, many of these hysterical parents were likely supporters of President Barack Obama, thus they naturally assumed this country has an imperial presidency).

Ali Wentworth, the wife of ABC news guy (and former Bill Clinton staffer) George Stephanopoulos, shared some anecdotes of dealing with the couple's two daughters (ages 11 and 14) upon Trump emerging victorious.

“I have an eleven-year-old daughter who doesn’t really understand what ISIS is but she knows that she is scared and she is now sleeping in bed with us every night,” Wentworth said.

“Yeah, so what do you do? You got little girls, you see what’s happening,” co-host Whoopi Goldberg responded. “What can you say to other parents who are at their wit’s end with their children who are scared, and they’re also scared as adults?”

Wentworth responded to Goldberg before she continued describing the distress her children have felt since election night.

“It just involves my fourteen-year-old getting upset about the election and screaming ‘no abortions’ really loudly,” Wentworth recalled.

So if their pal Hillary had won, was ISIS going to somehow become less scary? And was it that important to have a Commander in Chief who believes killing a baby in utero be deemed sacrosanct? Well, guess what? It looks as though you'll actually have to be parents by showing your own strength and conviction to the kids. Yes, I know this is a world in peril and that Mom & Dad may have their own anxieties about how to proceed with life in addition to being effective in child rearing. But this idea that parenting will become so much easier if your preferred political candidate wins is utterly ludicrous.

I guess the one surefire recommendation to soothe the kids' trepidation over a President Trump would be a lesson in Federalism and Separation of Powers. Of course it might behoove the parents to indulge in a refresher (or perhaps introductory) course themselves.

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Hacks now concerned about hacking

Newsflash: Potential Russian interference in this most recent U.S. Election and Donald Trump legitimately winning the Presidency are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

Nevertheless, there is a movement for Presidential Electors to be given intelligence briefings on the potential hacks prior to casting their ballots.

“The bipartisan electors' letter raises very grave issues involving our national security,” Clinton's former campaign chairman John Podesta said in a statement on Monday. “Electors have a solemn responsibility under the Constitution and we support their efforts to have their questions addressed.”

“Each day in October, our campaign decried the interference of Russia in our campaign and its evident goal of hurting our campaign to aid Donald Trump,” he said. “Despite our protestations, this matter did not receive the attention it deserved by the media in the campaign. We now know that the CIA has determined Russia's interference in our elections was for the purpose of electing Donald Trump. This should distress every American.”

Hey, welcome to the party Mr. Podesta! When then presidential candidate Mitt Romney indicated in a 2012 debate with President Barack Obama that Russia was out biggest geopolitical foe, Obama et al mocked him for being entrenched in 1980s foreign policy. But now that the Russia angle can be made to fit a certain narrative (i.e. Trump being illegitimately elected), even the staunchest of Clinton lap dogs are emitting mea culpas.

Absolutely. When @POTUS mocked Romney in 2012 for saying Russia was top threat, I cheered. @POTUS was wrong. I was wrong. Mitt was right. https://t.co/spF0zRZWEG

— Paul Begala (@PaulBegala) December 10, 2016

But over the past year or two, there have been some serious hacks which have occurred, specifically involving North Korea as well as Wikileaks. So what was being done to address those incidents? Not nearly enough, according to Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA).

NBC host Chuck Todd asked Schiff whether it was a mistake for Obama not to come out more definitively against the hacks before the election last month.'

“I do think it was a mistake,” Schiff said. ”I think it was a mistake even earlier frankly not to react more forcefully when North Korea hacked us because I think those that lack of deterrence invited the Russians to meddle and consider they could do this with impunity.”

Schiff said that he hopes that there can be a nonpartisan joint investigation with the intelligence communities.

“This ought to be a nonpartisan issue. This is not about re-litigating the election. it’s about getting good information to the American people about what happened and preventing it and deterring the Russians in the future,” Schiff added.

Amen.

Of the myriad opinions conveyed on this topic, I believe my friend and Northern Alliance Radio Network colleague Mitch Berg best summed up Russia's motivation for this alleged hack. And it wasn't necessarily to get Trump elected as many leftist bobble heads reflexively believe.

I've done some reading - and by "reading", I don't mean "Occupy Democrats" photo memes and "Young Turks" tweets. And here's what I think is going on.

I'm pretty sure the Russians did, in fact, try to exert pressure on our election, via propaganda and, likely, online skulduggery.

Why? To benefit Trump?

Nah. To sow chaos.

Putin is a former KGB guy. Intelligence guys know - when in doubt, create chaos. From chaos comes opportunity.

If the Russians (basically a third world country in a demographic death spiral, with a lower GDP than NY State but with nuclear weapons) can get the US to eat itself from within - say, over the results of the election - it saps the nation's political will to gain and hold the initiative on other things.

Like, say, exerting diplomatic pressure to help Ukraine or the Baltic States. Or extending and, lets be honest, repairing its influence in the Middle East. Or containing Iran.

Russia can't beat us in a head to head confrontation (short of nuking the Northern Hemisphere); they have to be smarter and more nimble than us.

Nimbleness is easy; Dictatorships don't need consensus.

As far as brains go? Well, if Putin manages to paralyze a much stronger nation via simply getting it to eat itself from the inside, we gotta give him that; that'd be pretty good. If you're a Russian nationalist.

In the end, anyone who just blindly states that potential cyber hacks alone cost Mrs. Clinton the election should be mocked mercilessly.

Russian hackers blocked anyone on Hillary's campaign from accessing the Wikipedia page about the electoral college. https://t.co/W1J5TlAjtV

— Sean Davis (@seanmdav) December 10, 2016

I'm mostly impressed at Russian cloaking technology that hid the entire states of Wisconsin & Michigan for 4 months. Brave new world. https://t.co/JNrc9aBX1w

— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) December 10, 2016

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Separated at Birth: Benny Johnson & the Sprint (formerly Verizon) guy.

Benny Johnson is a prominent conservative commentator and currently the Creative Director for the Independent Journal Review.


Remember the guy (his name is Paul Marcarelli) walking around talking on a Verizon device querying "Can you hear me now?" Well, he's now the "Sprint guy," appearing in commercials on behalf of Sprint Wireless.


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Like a clown I put on a show.................(UPDATE: Snowed in)

My friend and NARN colleague Mitch Berg has answered the call and will be guest-hosting for me on this snowy Sunday.

Oh the weather outside is frightful, but...uh.....eh, I suck at this. I guess what I'm trying to say is you should stay indoors and tune in to the Northern Alliance Radio Network this afternoon for my program The Closer. The fun and frivolity gets started at 2:00 Central Time.

No guests scheduled, so we'll look back at a busy news week which included continued laments over "fake news," the possibility of far left wing U.S. House member Keith Ellison running for DNC chair and the ceasing of construction (for now) on the Dakota Access pipeline.


So please call (651) 289-4488 if you'd like to weigh in on any of the topics I plan Mitch plans on addressing. You can also text comments/questions to (651) 243-0390.

You can listen live in the Twin Cities at AM 1280 on your radio dial. In and out of the Minneapolis-St Paul area, you can listen to the program on the Internet by clicking this link, or check us out via iheart radio. If you're unable to tune in live, please check out my podcast page for the latest show post.

Even though I have a face for radio, there is a UStream channel where you can watch the broadcast if you so desire. Check it out here.

And if you're so inclined, follow along on Twitter at #narn or "Like" our Facebook page.

Until then.....

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FAQs: Volume III

You asked, I answered.

Q: Did you enjoy that helping of crow you had to digest upon Donald Trump being elected President?
A: I fully admitted how I was wrong about Trump's electoral chances at every turn. However, the main reasons for my opposing him (i.e. non-conservative policies, lacks the temperament for the job) remain legitimate concerns. For the sake of my beloved country, I would love to be incorrect there as well.

Q: Congrats on the new job! Do you like it thus far?
A: Thank you! And yes, I like it. I especially enjoy not having to endure what would have been an 85% increase in my individual health insurance premiums as well as now getting the opportunity to have a paid vacation.

Q: So do you have any vacations planned?
 A: The fetching Mrs. Carlson and I plan to visit some dear friends in Washington state in late July and then rent a car to drive down Highway 101 into the San Francisco Bay Area.

Q: Your Vikings started 5-0 and now will be lucky to make the playoffs. What happened? 
A: Their good start had a lot to do with a dominant defense (and it's still very good) but they benefited from a defensive score and/or a special teams touchdown almost every game in that 5-0 start. No way was that sustainable for an entire 16-game schedule. And what was a suspect offensive line to start the season is now (to steal an analogy from Dennis Miller) leakier than Mark Geragos on a diuretic drip.

Q: No-Shave November (aka "Movember") is now over. When are you getting rid of that beard?
A: I'm ridin' it all the may to "Manuary," baby! 

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Reason number xxxx why Trump was elected.

Remember how lefties often proclaimed they were the party of the little guy?

Yeah......

The 2016 general election, explained. pic.twitter.com/oPZm8Roi9m

— T. Becket Adams (@BecketAdams) December 6, 2016

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Profiles in inspirational quotes

"The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just."

- Abraham Lincoln

“All there is to do is to vote ‘no’.”

-Rep. Keith Ellison on his job as the democratically elected leader of Minnesota's Congressional District Five.

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Lawlessness prevails in Obama's America

I haven't opined much on the contentious protests the Standing Rock Indian Tribe has launched over construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Despite their claims being largely refuted, demagoguery and conjecture often win the day in Barack Obama's politically correct and lawless America.

Within the past couple of weeks, the Army Corps of Engineers indicated that the Standing Rock protest camps must depart by December 5. However, the ACE also indicated that the tribe would not be forcibly removed from the demonstration site. With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that such a toothless threat would result in the project being delayed indefinitely.

In a statement, Assistant Army Secretary for Civil Works Jo-Ellen Darcy said alternate routes needed to be explored. Members of the tribe argue that the pipeline, which would carry nearly half a million barrels a day from the Bakken and Three Forks oil fields to a crude terminal near near Pakota, Ill., would damage sacred Native American sites and pollute their water.

The tribe's reservation boundary is half a mile south of the proposed crossing under Lake Oahe, an Army Corps of Engineers project on the Missouri River in North Dakota.

"Although we have had continuing discussion and exchanges of new information with the Standing Rock Sioux and Dakota Access, it's clear that there's more work to do," Darcy said. "The best way to complete that work responsibly and expeditiously is to explore alternate routes for the pipeline crossing."

Alternate routes would be considered with full public input and analysis and an Environmental Impact Statement, she said.

Again, the objections over burial grounds being desecrated and water being polluted have been answered. A federal project of this magnitude is never just jammed through without layers of government bureaucracies signing off and multiple regulatory requirements being satisfied.

In the end, it's quite possible this project will receive the appropriate easements and thus move forward once Donald Trump is officially sworn in as President on January 20. House Speaker Paul Ryan almost insinuated that much.

This is big-government decision-making at its worst. I look forward to putting this anti-energy presidency behind us. https://t.co/Qu0nFTmGZv

— Paul Ryan (@SpeakerRyan) December 5, 2016

And the reaction of Craig Stevens, who is a spokesperson with Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now:

#EXTRA: Statement from
MAIN Coalition spokesman Craig Stevens: pic.twitter.com/uVMoIfuRaz

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) December 4, 2016

You can also listen to my Saturday interview with North Dakota blogger Rob Port, who shared some valuable insights that you just won't get from the vacuous photo memes your lefty friends share on Facebook. The audio link to Rob's appearance is here.

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Brad out; Mitch in

I've done my radio broadcast for the weekend, so my friend and Northern Alliance Radio Network colleague Mitch Berg will be in for me today from 2:00 PM until 3:00 Central Time.

We'll return to our regularly scheduled time slots next weekend.

Until then.............

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Knee-deep in the hoopla......

With my friend and colleague Mitch Berg on assignment, I will take the reins of The Headliner edition of the Northern Alliance Radio Network this afternoon. The two-hour broadcast gets started just after 1:00 Central Time.

A lot to cover this week, including Gov. Mark Dayton's perpetual petulance, the Gaystapo's diligence in crushing dissent and lefty media/politicos bungling basic facts about Monday's terror attack at Ohio St. University.

At 2:00, I will be joined by North Dakota blogger/podcaster/political observer Rob Port. Over the past few months, there has been much contentiousness over construction of the Dakota Access pipeline, particularly the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and environmentalists vigorously protesting (sometimes violently) the project. Rob has been one of the few journalists I've seen who has eschewed conjecture and hyperbole in favor of actual reporting on this fluid situation.

Then at 2:30 I will be joined by MN state senator David Osmek (R-Mound). Among the items to be discussed will include the recently projected $1.4 Billion budget surplus, the U.S. Bank suite scandal, preview of the upcoming 2017 legislative session, etc.


So please call (651) 289-4488 if you'd like to weigh in on any of the topics I plan on addressing. You can also text comments/questions to (651) 243-0390.

You can listen live in the Twin Cities at AM 1280 on your radio dial. In and out of the Minneapolis-St Paul area, you can listen to the program on the Internet by clicking this link, or check us out via iheart radio. If you're unable to tune in live, please check out my podcast page for the latest show post.

Even though I have a face for radio, there is a UStream channel where you can watch the broadcast if you so desire. Check it out here.

And if you're so inclined, follow along on Twitter at #narn or "Like" our Facebook page.

Until then.....

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The Gaystapo never rests

As of June 2015, same-sex marriage became the law of the land. Because of that, many progressives believe you cannot morally object to something that has been deemed a legal activity. As Erick Erickson so prophetically pointed out nearly three years ago, you will be made to care.

Never has that sentiment been more validated then the Buzzfeed scrutinizing of Chip and Jonanna Gaines of the HGTV show Fixer Upper.

(The Gaineses) are also, as they detail in The Magnolia Story, devout Christians — Joanna has spoken of and written about her conversations with God. (God told her both to close her store to spend time with her children, and then to reopen it a few years later.) Their church, Antioch Community Church, is a nondenominational, evangelical, mission-based megachurch. And their pastor, Jimmy Seibert,look who described the Gaineses as “dear friends” in a recent video, takes a hard line against same-sex marriage and promotes converting LGBT people into being straight.

So are the Gaineses against same-sex marriage? And would they ever feature a same-sex couple on the show, as have HGTV’s House Hunters and Property Brothers? Emails to Brock Murphy, the public relations director at their company, Magnolia, were not returned. Nor were emails and calls to HGTV’s PR department.

Fixer Upper has fans of all stripes: Christians, feminists, and LGBT viewers have all found something to love in the Gaineses. So in the absence of a response from them or their representatives, it’s worth looking at the severe, unmoving position Seibert and Antioch take on same-sex marriage.

Um, why is it worth looking at? Have the Gaineses ever treated gays as second class citizens? Have they ever denied services to an LGBT couple based on their beliefs? This seems like little more than the "Gaystapo" seeking to destroy the livelihood of people who dare have a moral objection to licentious freedoms like gay marriage, abortion, etc.

Gabby Hoffman at The Resurgent summarizes it beautifully.

This targeting of the Gaineses is not uncharacteristic in this day and age. The Left and their surrogates in so-called “news” outlets are looking to stir the pot and divide Americans. If you dissent from their worldview, you are a bigot, sexist, racist, homophobe-the works. It’s no wonder why Trump, for all of his faults, won: people are sick and tired of the elites in all spheres attacking the American way of life.

Chip and Joanna Gaines are good, wholesome people who bring joy to Texans and millions across the country. They are respectful, courteous, kind folks who are devout Christians. Entertainment needs more people like them, not fewer.

Amen.

I guess progressives are used to high profile politicians like Vice President Joe Biden and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi defying their Catholic faith by sanctioning gay marriage and abortion. I mean, if powerful politicos can go against their faith's teachings, certainly the Gaineses can......or else.

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