OPEN THREAD: Don’t just sit there. Say something.

TEACH WOMEN NOT TO RAPE (CONT’D): Women Commit a Shockingly High Percentage of Sex Crimes: Women prisoners were three times as likely to be sexually victimized by women inmates than were men inmates by other male inmates. “I would only add to this thesis that perhaps the lack of attention to female sex crimes also stems from the fact that it does not neatly fit the popular narrative of women as an oppressed class.”

SO I SENT THANK-YOU EMAILS TO EVERYONE WHO HIT THE PAYPAL BUTTON RECENTLY. It took a while, since there were so many. If I somehow missed you, sorry! Know that your donation was nonetheless appreciated.

HOW OUT OF TOUCH WITH REALITY DO YOU HAVE TO BE, TO THINK THAT TRUMP IS “SLAVISHLY SUBORDINATE” TO PUTIN?

Reality: Democrats, Join Trump Against Russian Aggression: His administration has been tough on Moscow’s meddling, both in U.S. elections and abroad.

Mr. Mueller did indict 13 Russian nationals for offenses related to election meddling. We know Moscow spent money on Facebook ads designed to exploit America’s divisions, targeting voters on both sides of the aisle. And Mr. Trump and the Republicans have responded. Under legislation enacted by a Republican Congress, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on Russian oligarchs and intelligence agencies.

Beyond the meddling, Mr. Trump has slammed Russia with bold moves designed to weaken Mr. Putin on the world’s stage. This administration imposed sanctions on Russia for violating nonproliferation laws by supporting weapons programs in Iran, Syria and North Korea. The Trump administration also issued more sanctions in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine and its continuing occupation of Crimea. In 2017, the administration expelled 60 Russian intelligence officers and ordered multiple Russian consulates to close after Russia used a military-grade chemical weapon in the U.K. Mr. Trump even blocked Mr. Putin’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which could generate hundreds of millions of dollars for Russia if it goes ahead.

These tough actions have had an effect. Between January and July 2018, the Russian ruble declined 9% against the U.S. dollar. Russia’s Economic Development Ministry expects its economy to grow only 1.3% in 2019. The U.S. economy grew 2.9% in 2018 and is headed for another strong year.

In 2017, Mr. Trump supplied Ukraine with weapons so it could defend itself against Russian attacks. Remember, it was President Obama who stood idly as Russia invaded Crimea in 2014. Under the Trump administration, the U.S. has also engaged in hard-fought battles with Russian mercenaries in Syria.

In a sense, Russia succeeded in its mission to stoke division and fear within America. Some top Democrats have played right into Moscow’s hands by pursuing endless partisan investigations. If Democrats care about thwarting Russian meddling and aggression, they will disavow their conspiracy theory that our president is Mr. Putin’s puppet, and stop wasting taxpayer money peddling disproved collusion narratives. Instead, they can support this administration’s efforts to stand tall against the consistent threat Russia poses to America’s national security.

As Walter Russell Mead wrote in 2017:

If Trump were the Manchurian candidate that people keep wanting to believe that he is, here are some of the things he’d be doing:

Limiting fracking as much as he possibly could
Blocking oil and gas pipelines
Opening negotiations for major nuclear arms reductions
Cutting U.S. military spending
Trying to tamp down tensions with Russia’s ally Iran

That Trump is planning to do precisely the opposite of these things may or may not be good policy for the United States, but anybody who thinks this is a Russia appeasement policy has been drinking way too much joy juice.

Obama actually did all of these things, and none of the liberal media now up in arms about Trump ever called Obama a Russian puppet; instead, they preferred to see a brave, farsighted and courageous statesman. Trump does none of these things and has embarked on a course that will inexorably weaken Russia’s position in the world, and the media, suddenly flushing eight years of Russia dovishness down the memory hole, now sounds the warning that Trump’s Russia policy is treasonously soft.

Think of them as Democratic operatives with bylines, and no particular loyalty to the country’s best interests, and you won’t go far wrong.

But remember while America’s political class is focused on Russia, Chinese influence is running wild. That’s not an accident.

THE PROPER RESPONSE TO ANGRY CRYBULLIES: George Mason University to angry students: Kavanaugh’s teaching a course for us whether you like it or not.

JULIE BINDEL: Camille Paglia vs the trans-Taliban: The feminist thinker has a fight on her hands.

Camille Paglia has joined the ever-growing list of women in the metaphorical stocks being pelted with accusations of transphobia. A number of blue-fringed students at her university are demanding she be fired for her statements criticizing some women who bring charges of sexual assault, and because of her comments about transgender people. ‘I am highly skeptical about the current transgender wave, which I think has been produced by far more complicated psychological and sociological factors than current gender discourse allows’, she said in 2017.

Explain to them that they are a small fringe of neurotics, and that normals aren’t required to take their views seriously, much less refrain from expressing their own opinions for fear of upsetting a small fringe of neurotics.

ROGER SIMON: Democratic Party Shadows over Passover 2019.

THE MET ‘PLAYS IT LOUD:’ Over at the PJ Lifestyle section, I have a review, with plenty of photos, and a few criticisms, of the sprawling new exhibit (which runs until October 1st) at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, “Play It Loud: Instruments of Rock & Roll.”

(Bumped.)

BRYAN PRESTON: Keeping the Air Force Ready with the F-15X Super Eagle.

JAMES BOVARD REMINDS US THAT GOVERNMENT IS JUST ANOTHER WORD FOR THE THINGS WE CHOOSE TO DO TOGETHER: Bitter lessons 25 years after Waco, Texas, siege.

Janet Reno, the nation’s first female attorney general, approved the FBI’s assault on the Davidians. Previously, she had zealously prosecuted child abuse cases in Dade County, Fla, though many of her high-profile convictions were later overturned because of gross violations of due process. Reno approved the FBI assault after being told “babies were being beaten.” It is not known who told her about the false claims of child abuse. Reno’s sterling reputation helped the government avoid any apparent culpability for the deaths of 27 children on April 19, 1993. After Reno publicly promised to take responsibility for the outcome at Waco, the subsequent Justice Department investigation was so shoddy that even the New York Times denounced the “Waco whitewash.” . . .

When Attorney General Reno testified to the House Waco hearing on August 1, 1995, she was challenged on FBI’s use of 54-ton tanks to assail the Davidians. Reno replied that the tanks were “not military weapons… I mean, it was like a good rent-a-car.” When Rep. Bill Zeliff (R-N.H.) challenged her, Reno hectored: “I think it is important, Mr. Chairman, as you deal with this issue, not to make statements like that can cause the confusion.” This is the high-toned D.C. version of the old saying: “Who are you going to believe — me or your lying eyes?” Media coverage of Reno’s showdown with congressional Republicans ignored her rent-a-tank absurdity, instead praising her toughness and demeanor.

While the events at Waco alienated millions of Americans from the government, few if any lessons were learned in Washington. Waco should have taught the disastrous consequences of unleashing government agencies from the law and the Constitution. Unfortunately, 25 years later, controversies are raging as hot as ever about the power and prerogatives of federal law enforcement.

Our ruling class doesn’t learn unless it faces personal consequences. And it never faces personal consequences.

‘HYPOCRITE’ ACTRESS EMMA THOMPSON FLEW 5,400 MILES FROM LOS ANGELES TO JOIN LONDON ECO-WARRIOR PROTEST.

Earlier: Nancy Pelosi Announces Plans For A House ‘Climate Crisis’ Committee After Flying Thousands Of Miles To A Hawaiian Resort.

As Glenn likes to say, I’d be more inclined to take global warming seriously, when the people who tell me it’s a crisis start to act like it’s a crisis themselves.

WITH DNC IN MIND, CITY BANS CARRYING URINE, FECES: Kevin Williamson on the real reasons why New Yorkers are fleeing the city:

True story: My wife and I both are former residents of New York City, and on a recent business trip there she was taking a nostalgic walk through the Upper West Side on a lovely fall day, talking to me on the phone about the possibility of moving back there. And then the crusty guy walking in front of her on the sidewalk stopped, dropped trou and took a dump right there on the sidewalk on Central Park West.

“Never mind,” she said.

I’m so old, I can remember when it was San Francisco copying New York’s style, not the other way around. Read the whole thing.

(Classical reference in headline.)

PAST PERFORMANCE IS NO GUARANTEE OF FUTURE RESULTS:

“The MoveOn.org domain name was registered on September 18, 1998 by computer entrepreneurs Joan Blades and Wes Boyd, the married cofounders of Berkeley Systems, an entertainment software company known for the flying toaster screen saver and the popular video game series You Don’t Know Jack. After selling the company in 1997, Blades and Boyd became concerned about the level of ‘partisan warfare in Washington’ following revelations of President Bill Clinton’s affair with Monica Lewinsky. [2] The MoveOn website was launched initially to oppose the Republican-led effort to impeach Clinton. Initially called ‘Censure and Move On,’ it invited visitors to add their names to an online petition stating that ‘Congress must Immediately Censure President Clinton and Move On to pressing issues facing the country.’”

UM, WELL: We Can’t Stop Looking At This Lexus Minivan. “It’s intended as luxurious chauffeured transportation for the business executive who has everything. The Lexus LM is similar in size to the long-wheelbase Ford Transit Connect while seating only four.”

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NEWS YOU CAN USE: If my measles shot was years ago, am I still protected? 5 questions answered.

THE POWER LINE WEEK IN PICTURES: Mueller Encore Edition.

TOO MANY CARBS, AND NOT ENOUGH CHOLINE FROM EGGS AND ORGAN MEAT: Why are so many Latino children developing fatty liver disease?

CHUTZPAH ALERT: CNN’s April Ryan Accuses Mike Huckabee Of Inciting Violence After He Quotes Her Saying Sarah Sanders’ Head Should Be ‘Lopped Off.’

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NO. GO AWAY. Flu season stretches to longest in a decade.

JUST THINK OF THEM AS DEMOCRATIC PARTY OPERATIVES WITH BYLINES AND YOU WON’T GO FAR WRONG: “It is a little embarrassing that, according to recent polls, the top 4 candidates for the Democratic nomination are white males. I think the NYT is trying to help readers accept that rejecting white maleness should not be a priority.”

FASTER, PLEASE: 9 Pieces of Bionic Tech That Will Make You Superhuman.