Archive for 2024

TRULY ONE OF THE GREATEST INTEL OPERATIONS IN HISTORY: Israel’s Supply Chain Hack: Manufactured, Not Altered. “More information about Israel’s pager etc. attack against Hezbollah has come to light, and it appears Israel didn’t intercept and adulterate the supply chain, it was the supply chain.”

Related (From Ed): Michael Scott Doran of the Hudson Institute writes, “This is one of the most astonishing intelligence operations in history. It is a reworking of the story of the Trojan Horse for the digital age, and it deserves to become nearly as legendary as its iconic predecessor. If we are not utterly astounded, it is because we have seen too many James Bond and Black Mirror movies for our own good. In real life, operations like this just don’t happen. It is at least four operations in one.”

QUESTION ASKED: Is Mary Jane to Blame For Teen Suicides?

We’ve been looking at almost 30 years of the liberalization of marijuana prohibitions. A recent study looks at an unintended consequence of the move.

Medical, Recreational Marijuana Legalization Associated With Higher Rates of Youth Suicide, Study Shows
Female youth aged 12 to 24 and youth of both sexes aged 14 to 16 living in states with legalized medical marijuana or recreational marijuana between 2000 and 2019 had higher rates of death by suicide than youth in states with no such laws, according to a report in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

“The findings translate to nearly 5,000 excess suicide deaths of female adolescents and young adults related to medical marijuana and recreational marijuana legalization,” the report claims. “Given dramatic shifts in cannabis policy over the past 20 years, it is important for clinicians and policymakers to understand potential downstream public health outcomes related to changing cannabis policy.”

Flashback: Second Thoughts on Pot: “‘Yeah, they all smoke.’ ‘Well . . . other things too, right?’ ‘Sometimes. But they all smoke.’”

IS IVF ETHICAL? It comes as a bit of a surprise in this corner, but there are serious people with well-informed, credible ethical and moral objections, including those behind the Colson Center’s “What Would You Say” videos on HillFaith. My own mind is not yet made up one way or the other but I am very interested in how Instapunditeers view it.

IN THE MAIL: How the Jester Became King: Dave Portnoy and the Real Story of Barstool Sports is now available on Amazon for pre-ordering.

In full disclosure, I did the pre-publication legal review for the book. It’s an unauthorized biography, but very accurate with well-sourced facts and quotes including citations.

To be honest, I’m somewhat ambivalent about Portnoy. He proudly shows his role in the development of “bro’ culture” which isn’t totally my cup of tea. I’ve never been much of a “frat boy.” (Though I have to say his “one-bite pizza test” is awesome).

But at the same time, this highly-detailed story shows his vigilance against wokeness, and also the time-tested truth that if you have an idea, bust your @ss to make it work, and maintain a sense of humor, you’ll do well.

And indeed, he has done well.

 

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES… OR ARE THEY? Denver fur ban initiative targets fashion industry, but it’s got fly-fishers and cowboy hat makers worried too.

Initiated Ordinance 308 — which seeks to prohibit the manufacturing, sale, trade and display of select fur products — would have a raft of consequences that go beyond prohibiting retailers in the Mile High City from selling fox and raccoon fur coats, those opponents say.

It also could cut into the inventory at fly-fishing shops, people in the angling business say. It could upend the market for custom hat makers who are keeping Denver’s dusty old cow town traditions alive.

The measure could even make it more difficult for people with Indigenous ancestry to purchase fur products that are part of their cultural heritage. That, despite a specific carveout in the proposed ordinance’s language that would allow members of federally recognized Native American tribes to purchase products for tribal, cultural and spiritual purposes, opponents say.

“I think the exemption that whoever wrote was very specific and very narrow. And I think it was written without a clear understanding that across the United States, a majority of American Indians are self-identified — and not officially enrolled with any federally recognized tribes,” said Ernest House Jr., the former director executive director of the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs. He’s a member of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.

It isn’t like Denver has a Big Fur problem and fur sellers will just move out to the suburbs. Initiated Ordinance 308 looks like yet another one of those vanity law projects that won’t change much but will inconvenience a few people the anti-fur people don’t care about.

IF THEY DIDN’T HAVE DOUBLE STANDARDS: They wouldn’t have any standards at all. The Democrats’ legion of allies in the Mainstream Media, that is. Issues & Insights takes on this hypocrisy and makes the fundamental point.

The incivility and demagoguery that has poisoned American politics originated with a TV spot that was only broadcast once during the 1964 campaign. It told voters nuclear catastrophe would result if Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater was elected instead of  LBJ, who succeeded to the Oval Office when JFK was assassinated.

AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD: Governor Abbott Declares Texas Sanctuary State For Memers. “‘To all memers out there: Texas will embrace you,’ Abbott said at a press conference announcing the order. ‘No memer should live under the type of despotic rule and suppression of the right to be funny that we’re seeing in other states. I officially declare the state of Texas open to all memers who dream of creating sick burns and dank viral memes.’”

SAD: Special ed is failing: With no time to meet diverse needs, teachers lower expectations. “If the teacher gives students the answers the day before the test, students don’t learn to study. If the teacher allows retakes, students don’t learn to allocate their time. If the class moves so slowly the teacher can’t cover the material, students are unprepared for the next grade. ‘What do children learn when their world bends for them?,’ asks Dissident Teacher. ‘What happens to the kids for whom the world used to bend when they enter a world that no longer will?'”

Nothing good.

KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: Kamala’s Border Nightmare Will Either Sink Her or the Country. “If Kamala Harris does win, the whole country will become Springfield, OH and Aurora, CO. We won’t even have to worry about the economy still tanking, we’ll be too busy trying to stay alive. Harris has promised to get tough on the border and immigration if elected, but we all know that isn’t going to happen. Sure, the low-info Dem base will lap it up. They’re not living in the real world though, are they?”

THE MOST IMPORTANT MAN OF THE 21ST CENTURY (SO FAR) IS HOBBLED BY PARTISAN HACKS:

Read the whole thing.

From the replies: “It’s frustrating that SpaceX can build a giant Rocket faster than FAA does paperwork.”

More:

It starts with a T.

AARON RODGERS SURVIVES A GAME IN A JETS UNIFORM! Rodgers returns to huge cheers for 1st home game since Achilles tendon injury last year.

The Jets beat the Pats 24-3, but the real story was the “Sideline Staredown” between Rodgers and coach Robert Saleh:

“Is Saleh trying too hard to be Aaron’s buddy? Or is it unsportsmanlike conduct from Rodgers? Look at those eyes … that’s a ‘death stare’ if I’ve ever seen one.”