THE “ROBBER BARONS” OF THE 19TH CENTURY GAVE US STEAMSHIPS AND RAILROADS; THE SPACE BARONS OF TODAY WILL GIVE US THE STARS. ‘Space Barons’ & Advantages of a Free Economy.

The Harvard University psychologist Steven Pinker once quipped that “intellectuals who call themselves ‘progressive’ really hate progress.” The question is: Why? Perhaps one of the reasons for that curious attitude is not the clerisy’s opposition to progress as such, but to the means by which that progress is being achieved. Since the Enlightenment, we have become richer, healthier, better fed, longer-lived, more educated, and, as Pinker himself showed, gentler and nicer. Not only did most of that progress come about in free-enterprise countries during the free-enterprise era, but progress happened despite the constant warnings from the clerisy that free enterprise would achieve the exact opposite.

Inequality of outcome is inherent to a free economy, which tends to reward the most talented. Since talent is unequally and arbitrarily distributed, free enterprise and its resulting inequality of outcome are unpalatable to the equalitarian Left. Yet progress depends on the flourishing of the talented. That means that inequality is truly the midwife of progress. And that’s why progressives hate progress.

Well, also free markets reward talents other than lying and sucking up.

WITH RUTHLESS EFFICIENCY: How the Gender Industry Weaponizes Empathy to Convert Human Insecurity Into Cash. “Compassion is weaponized into word-salads chock full of meaningless jargon intended to confuse the reader into conflating true empathy with bovine-like acceptance of the transgender movement writ large.”

LUV GUV UPDATE: Probe finds Gov. Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women, violated federal and state law.

Flashback: Cuomo should resign if allegations confirmed: Biden in exclusive ABC News interview.

STACEY LENNOX: California’s Liberal Utopia: Blackouts, Bacon Shortages, and Maxi Pads for Boys. “California only produces 45 million pounds of the 255 million pounds consumed by residents. California residents decided the piggy needed more room to wiggle, which, according to one analysis, will cause bacon prices to jump 60%. For pork producers, the desires of California voters are just not profitable.”

California is the Sackcloth State.

BUT #METOO ENDED WHEN BIDEN WAS NOMINATED: ‘I Do Not Want An Apology’: Cuomo Accuser Charlotte Bennett Calls For Impeachment.

Related, from a friend:

21ST CENTURY RELATIONSHIPS: The Modern Generation Has No Clue How to Date.

IT ISN’T ALWAYS NICE TO MAKE TWITCHY: ‘Man, people just really hate her’: Detailed thread about Kamala Harris’ shocking unpopularity will give you ALL the warm fuzzies.

HE PROBABLY THOUGHT THEY MEANT HIS GOOD FRIEND MARIO: Yikes: Joe Biden Freaks When Reporters Ask Him if Andrew Cuomo Should Resign.

MARK RIPPETOE: If They Can Make You Believe a Big Strong Man Belongs in the Women’s Division, They Can Make You Believe Anything.

THE MEDIA SPENT A YEAR CELEBRATING SERIAL SEXUAL HARASSER GOVERNOR CUOMO (video):

Related: Where’s Jennifer Rubin and Her Twitter Love For Sexual Predator Andrew Cuomo … Now?

UPDATE: From March: CNN Won’t Even Speak the Name Cuomo On Air, Following Newest of Many Scandals.

JUST FYI: I’m back on Parler as @InstaPundit. Better than Twitter! If you want there to be alternative platforms, you need to support alternative platforms.

#RESIST: Soros-Backed Virginia Prosecutors Face Recall Amid Crime Surge. “A new Virginia nonprofit, Virginians for Safe Communities, is launching a campaign to recall Fairfax County’s Steve Descano, Loudoun County’s Buta Biberaj, and Arlington County’s Parisa Dehghani-Tafti from their respective offices, the group announced in a Monday statement. The progressive attorneys took office in January 2020 after Soros spent more than $2 million supporting their campaigns. All three have since implemented lenient law enforcement policies, decisions that have coincided with a rise in crime.”

JIM TREACHER: Lindsey Graham Got the Virus, But Not Despite Getting Vaccinated. “No. No, no, no, no, no. Wrong. Whether or not Lindsey Graham becomes seriously ill, and I sincerely hope he doesn’t, it’s not despite the vaccine. That’s like saying somebody survived a gunshot despite wearing a bulletproof vest. Wait, what? No. That’s the whole point of the vest! It still sucks when the bad thing happens to you, but you have a much better chance of living through it because you took preventative measures. Vest or vaccine, it’s the same idea.”

DON’T BUY FROM CHINA? How to Keep the Automotive Chip Shortage From Happening Again.

YES, BUT HE’S A DEMOCRAT: Several Media Outlets Knew Cuomo Was Trying To Destroy One Of His Accusers. “Several media outlets knew that Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo was trying to destroy one of the women who accused him of sexual harassment. Rich Azzopardi, Cuomo’s director of communications and senior adviser, sent a file on Cuomo accuser Lindsey Boylan to journalists from several prominent outlets, documents show. The files were sent hours after Boylan publicly accused Cuomo of sexual harassment in December of 2020. . . . New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday that an independent investigation found that Cuomo had sexually harassed multiple women. James said that Cuomo had violated state and federal law by subjecting employees to offensive or sexually charged comments as well as unwanted touching. He also was involved in pressure campaigns to keep them quiet, the investigation found.”

FLOUTING THE RULES TO OWN THE PEASANTS: These 12 High-Profile Politicians Got Caught Violating Their Own COVID Rules.

A REMEDY FOR WOKE NONSENSE: Red, White, and Black: Rescuing American History from Revisionists and Race Hustlers. Edited by Robert Woodson, with chapters by John McWhorter, Shelby Steele, Clarence Page, Carol Swain, and more.

HIGHER EDUCATION IMPLOSION UPDATE: Professor Sues Student, University After Provost Overrules Her and Awards Him a Participation Grade.

THESE MARGINS DWARF ANY RECENT ELECTIONS: 57% COMFORTABLE ATTENDING INDOOR SOCIAL EVENTS WITHOUT MASKS.

Fifty-seven percent (57%) of voters would feel comfortable going without a mask to an indoor restaurant, bar, or other social settings with a large number of people. A Scott Rasmussen national survey found that 40% would be uncomfortable.

These numbers are essentially unchanged since late May. That stability is interesting for a variety of reasons. In late May, 56% were confident that the worst of the pandemic is behind us. That figure has fallen to 28% today. Additionally, the CDC guidance on wearing masks has changed, a fact that 61% of voters recognize.

One possible explanation for this is that a large number of people are simply not following the CDC guidelines. Among those who recognize that the CDC recommends even vaccinated people to wear masks at indoor social events, 42% are comfortable attending such events without a mask. That’s consistent with data from a few months ago showing that just 33% of voters have been following the CDC guidance very closely.

Well, the CDC isn’t trusted.

Plus: 62% oppose new lockdowns, 31% want them.

OUT: GET VACCINATED AND YOU PROBABLY NEED A BOOSTER. IN: People chasing Covid-19 vaccine boosters create headaches for the health care system.

The entire U.S. health care system has been single-mindedly focused on getting Covid-19 vaccine shots in arms, but as the Delta variant spreads, the country’s decentralized vaccination campaign is presenting a different challenge — how to police people seeking unauthorized booster shots.

The buzz around booster shots for Covid-19 vaccines has intensified in recent weeks as Pfizer has sought approval for a third shot of its vaccine regimen, and Israel, the United Kingdom, and Germany have greenlit additional shots. Federal officials in the United States say that booster shots are not needed yet. But some anxious patients are nonetheless trying to get them — either by asking a health care provider willing to prescribe an extra shot, or by lying about their earlier vaccination.

So there. But maybe they’re depriving people who want a first shot of chances? Nope. “Because vaccine supplies have been so plentiful in recent weeks, ensuring patients aren’t overloading on vaccines hasn’t necessarily been top of mind for providers.”

This story line seems to be appearing all over all of a sudden. Why?

WHAT JIM CROW ON STEROIDS ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE: Mark Hamill calling for racist voter suppression to own Donald Trump Jr. and MAGA.

FOR THE CHILDREN™: New Study Shows Just How Much School Lockdowns Harm Innocent Kids. “The McKinsey report uses testing results from spring 2021, translating points-based scores into a “months-of-learning-lost” metric and comparing this year’s results to pre-pandemic levels. The results show that, on average, elementary school students lost the equivalent of five months—or half a school year—of learning in math, and four months in reading. Results varied by race and income, and unsurprisingly, students of color and from poorer families suffered most.”

HIGH TESTOSTERONE MAY NOT MAKE YOU A SUCCESS. It may even work the other way:

There are plausible mechanisms for this too. First, we know that socioeconomic disadvantage is stressful, and chronic stress can lower testosterone. Second, how a person perceives their status relative to others in society might influence their testosterone: studies of sports matches, usually between men, have often found that testosterone rises in the winner compared to the loser.

It’s also possible that some third factor is responsible for the associations seen in previous studies. For instance, higher testosterone in men is linked to good health – and good health may also help people succeed in their careers.

So there you are.

EVERYTHING IS RACIST: Now You Are a Racist if You Don’t Want Your Kid Near a Pit Bull.

GOOD: Exercise improves health through changes to DNA.