21st CENTURY RELATIONSHIPS: Aaron Rodgers Has A New Girlfriend ‘Blu Of Earth’ Who Claims To Be A Witch.
Author Archive: Ed Driscoll
June 9, 2022
NEW CIVILITY WATCH:
FAST TIMES AT BEN BRADLEE HIGH: The Washington Post’s week from Hell.
The paper known for its slogan “Democracy Dies in Darkness” should perhaps be more concerned about its own well-being after the disastrous week it had.
The Washington Post, the once-revered news organization that famously exposed the Watergate scandal leading to a president’s resignation, is still highly respected in the Beltway but has lost its way in recent years among most Americans. From declaring the coronavirus lab-leak theory was a “debunked” “conspiracy” to quickly rejecting the Hunter Biden laptop scandal in the final weeks of the 2020 presidential election, the Post of today is simply not the same as the Post of the Nixon era.
But the events that occurred over the past week may be some of the worst that have plagued the Washington Post in its 144-year history.
Speaking of which: Things at the Washington Post are great.Thanks for asking!
It certainly looks apparent that despite the suspension of Weigel over a simple retweet, Sonmez is trying to provoke a disciplinary action from her superiors at the Post, which she can then use as evidence of retaliation for her lawsuit in her appeal.
The public appearance is that the inmates are running the Jeffrey Preston Bezos Asylum and that the Post has a completely upside-down idea of what constitutes an ethical lapse. A single retweet, swiftly retracted, is worth a month-long suspension. However calling out colleges on a public timeline, siccing online mobs on them, leaking internal emails and refusing to comply with workplace directives are allowed to continue. Something stinks at the Washington Post and for once it’s not Dave Weigel.
And the hits just keep on coming! WaPo’s Felicia Sonmez torches ‘White’ colleagues for ‘downplaying’ workplace drama with ‘synchronized tweets.’
Washington Post reporter Felicia Sonmez continued her scorched-earth tweeting about her colleagues on Thursday, this time taking aim at ‘White,” “star” reporters who expressed solidarity with the paper as the viral infighting has dominated conversation in the media industry.
On Thursday, Sonmez took a flamethrower to fellow staffers in another lengthy series of tweets, attacking those who had posted recent, strikingly similar messages of support for their paper.
“I don’t know who the colleagues anonymously disparaging me in media reports are. But I do know that the reporters who issued synchronized tweets this week downplaying the Post’s workplace issues have a few things in common with each other,” Sonmez wrote during a lengthy Twitter thread.
“They are all white – They are among the highest-paid employees in the newsroom, making double and even triple what some other National desk reporters are making, particularly journalists of color – They are among the ‘stars’ who ‘get away with murder’ on social media,” Sonmez tweeted. “Of course the Washington Post is a great workplace. It is a great workplace *for them.* The system is working *for them.* What about for everyone else? The General Assignment team? The Morning Mix team? The newsletter researchers?”
Sonmez insisted there have been “long-standing issues” within the Post that have not been addressed and that will only continue, even if the media will move on from “trivializing” them as a “Twitter spat.”
Nothing like calling your employer crypto-racists. So how is all of the drama of the gifted children being received outside the writers’ bullpen?
YOU’RE GONNA NEED A MUCH BIGGER BLOG: Here’s the economic data Biden doesn’t want you to see.
A TALE OF TWO PRESIDENTS: What DECADE does he think it is?! Biden goes on bizarre rant about biracial couples and you know even Jimmy Kimmel had to cringe a little (watch). Biden babbles to Kimmel, “Turn on the TV, look at the ads. When’s the last time you saw biracial couples on TV? When’s the last time you saw the way, I mean, people are selling products, they do ads and sell products. And they sell products when people, they appeal to people.”
Flashback:
Bush was driven to the Waco airstrip in an unmarked vehicle, with only a tiny Secret Service contingent. As Bush described the scene for reporters afterward: “They pulled up in a plain-looking vehicle with tinted windows. I slipped on a baseball cap, pulled ‘er down — as did Condi. We looked like a normal couple,” he said, referring to National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice.
—“Surprise! Bush Pops in for Dinner in Baghdad,” The Orlando Sentinel, November 27th, 2003.
COVERING THE IMPORTANT STORIES: Progressive Writer Doggedly Tracks Down Creator of Biden ‘I Did That’ Gas Pump Stickers.
These stickers have proliferated across the country and across sales platforms. You can find them for sale on Amazon, at eBay, and Etsy, as well as other outlets, usually with a gross available for under $10. The messaging has been effective enough that Republicans have been inspired to hold voter registration efforts at gas stations. Now, in the face of this grassroots political commentary, the press has once again snapped into action.
At Business Insider, writer Nina Burleigh decided that there was a need to track down the originator of this organic campaign against Joe Biden. (As a sign of where Burleigh’s allegiances rest, she is infamous for proclaiming she would have serviced President Bill Clinton with oral sex because of his pro-abortion stance.)
* * * * * * * *
Nina attempted to pin things down via some early social posts about the stickers, then began contacting numerous retail outlets with questions and probes, but came up empty. Then her intrepid sleuthing paid off – when the creator actually contacted her. Robert “Bobby” Naklicki, president and CEO of Redneck Nation called Burleigh directly with the announcement that he was the original source of the dastardly decals.
According to Naklicki, he produced the very first “I Did That” stickers in May 2021, the same month gas prices hit $3 a gallon. “Our brain trust did that,” he told me. Once his team came up with the idea, they began printing the stickers in Florida by the thousands.
* * * * * * * *
If Burleigh was of the mind that outing Naklicki will bring an end to this craze, or at the least bring him and his company enough pressure to curtail their campaign, she is mistaken. As has been proven repeatedly in the Biden era, those on the right have a deft hand with this type of organic messaging. When a NASCAR reporter attempted to deflect from fans cursing out the president, the “Let’s Go Brandon” phrase instantly swept the country for months.
In a similar fashion, as the Biden administration attempted to get a rebuke of messaging on Republicans by unleashing the “Ultra-MAGA” tagline, those on the right embraced it instantly. It became a mocking intonation for many, and the impact the White House may have hoped for was never realized.
In fact, Naklicki’s company made a move on that term – they pounced, if you will. “We trademarked ultramaga.com right away.,” he said, calling it “the new ‘deplorables.’”
Heh, indeed. As Glenn Greenwald wrote in April, “Your Top Priority is The Emotional Comfort of the Most Powerful Elites, Which You Fulfill by Never Criticizing Them.” Burleigh thought she was going to be next mighty leftist doxxer; it’s good to see someone declare himself uncancellable. (And Redneck Nation is a great brand name, given the craziness of 21st century America.)
Related: Biden tormented by Republican guerrilla campaign and ‘I did it’ stickers.
Also: 100Pcs I Did That Biden Funny Car Stickers. #Resist #CommissionEarned
Flashback: US journalist [Nina Burleigh] loses in libel action against Telegraph over Melania Trump apology.
BRANDON GETS RESULTS! Biden ‘Jokes’ About Sending Political Opponents to Jail. The FBI Actually Does It the Very Next Morning. “Last night on Jimmy Kimmel’s show, Biden promised to throw his political opponents in jail. This morning, Biden’s FBI arrested a GOP candidate for governor in Michigan.”
June 8, 2022
WHY IS THE HOUSE OF STEPHANOPOULOS SUCH A CESSPIT OF RACISM? The View’s’ Joy Behar unaware that black Americans own guns too.
AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD: In Honor Of Pride Month Chick-Fil-A Waffle Fries Will Be Seasoned With Salt From Lot’s Wife.
NICHOLAS JOHN ROSKE ARRESTED OUTSIDE BRETT KAVANAUGH’S HOME WITH CHILLING ARSENAL OF WEAPONS:
The man arrested outside Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s home has been charged with attempted murder.
Nicholas John Roske of Simi Valley, California, who was identified in a criminal complaint charging him with the attempted murder of a Supreme Court justice, was dressed in black when he arrived by taxi just after 1 a.m. outside Kavanaugh’s home in a Washington suburb.
Roske, a 26-year-old white man, had a Glock 17 pistol, ammunition, a knife, zip ties, pepper spray, duct tape, and other items that he told police he would use to break into Kavanaugh’s house and kill him, according to a criminal complaint and affidavit filed in federal court in Maryland. Roske said he purchased the gun specifically to kill Kavanaugh and that he also planned to then kill himself, according to the affidavit written by FBI agent Ian Montijo, who also interviewed Roske early Wednesday after he had confessed his plan to police.
Police said they searched the bag and suitcase that Roske showed up with and found two magazines and ammunition to go along with the suspect’s freshly purchased pistol, a pistol light, a black tactical chest rig, a tactical knife, and pepper spray. He also had on him what seemed to be likely burglary tools, including a hammer, screwdriver, nail punch, crowbar, and hiking boots with padding on the outside of the soles. Roske also had zip ties and duct tape.
When he initially got out of the taxi, Roske was spotted by two deputy U.S. marshals who are part of round-the-clock security provided to the justices following the leak of a draft opinion last month. But Roske was only apprehended after he called 911 in Montgomery County, Maryland, and said he was having suicidal thoughts and planned to kill Kavanaugh, having found the justice’s address online. Roske was still on the phone when Montgomery County police arrived on the scene, according to the affidavit.
The man, 26-year-old Nicholas John Roske, after being apprehended a block away from Kavanaugh’s residence, also told cops he was upset over the likelihood of the Supreme Court soon overturning the constitutional right to abortion, and the elementary school massacre in Uvalde, Texas, those records show.
“Roske stated that he began thinking about how to give his life a purpose and decided that he would kill the Supreme Court Justice [Kavanaugh] after finding the Justice’s Montgomery County address on the Internet,” FBI Special Agent Ian Montijo wrote in an affidavit.
“Roske further indicated that he had purchased [a] Glock pistol and other items for the purpose of breaking into the Justice’s residence and killing the Justice as well as himself,” the agent wrote.
Roske, who lives in Simi Valley, is being charged with one count of attempted murder of a Supreme Court justice. He faces a possible maximum prison sentence of 20 years if convicted.
How did Roske get Kavanaugh’s address?
Roske stated that he began thinking about how to give his life a purpose and decided that he would kill the Supreme Court Justice after finding the Justice’s Montgomery County address on the internet.”
I suppose it’s possible someone else had posted it but it seems most likely this is a reference to Ruth Sent Us, the group which posted a map with addresses for six of the Justices last month. As I pointed out at the time, Ruth Sent Us claimed they didn’t provide complete addresses but that was a gimmick designed to give them plausible deniability. In fact, they had also posted TikTok videos which identified each home. In several cases they made sure the house number was visible in the videos. They’ve also been tweeting out messages like this one calling for the “punishment” of just one “corrupt theocrat” on the Court.
* * * * * * * *
Finally, before we move on, let’s not forget that Ruth Sent Us isn’t the only group/person using this sort of apocalyptic language about a SCOTUS decision. Elected Democrats have been leaping in front of cameras to express their anger, some of them predicting consequences.
https://twitter.com/BonillaJL/status/1534562308785065985
In 2011, the DNC-MSM kept the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords and 18 others as a topic for weeks. Already the assassination attempt on Kavanaugh is being allowed to fade out off the front page:
Front webpage of the NY Times right now. Takes a full double scroll before the assassination attempt on a sitting SCOTUS Justice is even mentioned. pic.twitter.com/n5YOZEv3do
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) June 8, 2022
OUT ON A LIMB: Confirmed: Media Matters is a garbage place.
Timothy Johnson, a “researcher” with Media Matters for America, announced Monday that he had left the organization after ten years — and apparently not on amicable terms.
Johnson not only accused his former boss of covering for a sexual predator, but offered a rare mea culpa for his time with Media Matters. Maybe — just maybe — he notes, the organization dedicated to using out-of-context quotes, spurious accusations, and old tweets to destroy the livelihoods of its political enemies is not the virtuous place he thought it to be.
In a long tweet thread, Johnson claims that Media Matters editorial director Ben Dimiero knew for years that a male staff member was engaging in sexual misconduct but did nothing to stop him.
Read the whole thing.
HEADLINES FROM WEIMAR AMERICA: Methodist Church’s First Drag Queen Pastor: ‘God Is Nothing.’
UNEXPECTEDLY! Biden Is Making the Sun Shine—for China.
This week, President Biden invoked the Defense Production Act to expedite domestic production of solar panels. The move is yet another empty and cynical gesture camouflaging an increasingly evident and disturbing anti-America agenda.
According to press reports, the purpose of Biden’s DPA announcement was to increase domestic manufacturing of solar panels in order to increase U.S. energy security and independence and lower energy costs for Americans at a time of skyrocketing gas prices; the national average an unthinkable $5 a gallon this week.
Blah-blah-blah, as Greta Thunberg might say. The actual purpose of Biden’s invocation of the DPA was to roll back the Trump-era tariffs on Communist China-made solar panels.
Who on earth could have seen this coming?
DON SURBER: PayPal is saving America.
I don’t see a lot of worries about pronouns or concerns about equity and privilege in the stories about them. Thiel is gay but not LGBT. As for the others, it’s none of my business.
My point is 5 immigrants and 2 natives made it rich quick and did not go all PC and hate the country that enabled their success. Indeed, they are grateful for America.
We need more of that and less of Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos. The way you save the world is through capitalism. The way you destroy it is by forcing vaccines on everyone and talking about reducing the population.
Read the whole thing.
Related: I think we can safely Elon Musk never visited Epstein’s Island: Elon Musk has a question about Jeffrey Epstein.
Elon Musk recently posted a meme about Jeffrey Epstein and the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Twitter, the brand he’s soon (maybe?) hoping to buy. The meme says, “Only thing more remarkable than DOJ not leaking the list is that no one in the media cares. Doesn’t that seem odd?”
While Cockburn has nothing but reverence for his governmental overlords, Musk’s reference to the Jeffery Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell client list does stand out as a particularly juicy piece of news. The mainstream media has avoided the list like the Spanish Flu. Doesn’t the average person deserve to know which of their esteemed leaders has taken a trip to the infamous Little Saint James Island? The short answer is no, because ever since the Maxwell trial (which was also subject to a media blackout), very little has occurred in the public eye.
Just think of the media as Democratic Party operatives with bylines, and the DNC-MSM memory hole makes perfect sense.
Evergreen:
WELCOME BACK, CARTER! World Bank: Get ready for That 70s Stagflation Show.
The global stagnation at the end of WWII came in large part because so much national wealth had been destroyed in Europe and the Pacific Rim. The US avoided much of that destruction, and even then we suffered through an economic downturn in the immediate aftermath of the war. Without capital to invest, Europe entered into a stasis of poverty and famine, until the US pulled together its Marshall Plan after dealing with our war debt to revitalize the continent.
The lack of real capital then parallels our situation now. In the 1970s, we had oil shocks, asset bubbles, and over-regulation that created the stagflation maelstrom, but we didn’t have a significant amount of national debt in relation to GDP. The debt-to-GDP ratio remained in the low 30% range all decade long, giving the US lots of flexibility for budgeting and investment.
Now, however, we’re back to oil shocks, asset bubbles, and over-regulation impeding economic growth, but our debt-to-GDP ratio is now 124%. That’s higher than it was during World War II in any one year; 114% in 1945 was the wartime high, and it got to 119% in 1946 as the US economy went into recession. We no longer have any flexibility for capital investment to deal with the strategic conditions of the present day, especially while we refuse to extract and refine the oil we can access.
In retrospect, this was the moment when we know that ’70s Show was guaranteed to be in reruns for quite some time:
FASTER, PLEASE: LA officials warn DA George Gascon after Chesa Boudin recall: ‘You’re next.’
As New York Times owner Tom Cotton wrote in December: Recall, Remove & Replace Every Last Soros Prosecutor.
HOW’S THAT WELCOME WAGON PROGRAM COMING ALONG? Successful Americans Are Abandoning These Five High-Tax States, New IRS Data Show.
GENTLEMEN, START YOUR AIRBRUSHES! Breaking: California man with gun arrested outside Brett Kavanaugh’s home, says he was there to kill SCOTUS justice.
Naturally, no one in the DMC-MSM will recall Chuck Schumer shouting in 2020, “I want to tell you Gorsuch. I want to tell you Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”
And here’s Joy Reid’s Twitter page in 2018:
At least no clip art was harmed in the making of their violent rhetoric.
Earlier: Reagan historian: Releasing Hinckley signals it’s OK to target conservatives.
Flashbacks:
● Sen. Rand Paul had part of his lung removed this weekend because of damage from 2017 attack.
● Actor Jeff Daniels to CBS’s Stephen Colbert: ‘We Need Someone That Can Punch Trump in the Face.’
● Ilhan Omar Retweet Suggests Rand Paul Deserved to Be Assaulted.
● Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) to 2020 Dems: Don’t Run Away from Trump — ‘Punch Him in the Face.’
● Joe Biden: I Want to ‘Beat the Hell Out of’ President Trump.
● Patti LuPone defends violent attack on Rand Paul.
● CNN Host Palled Around with, Promoted ICE Firebomber’s Antifa Group.
● Leftist Thug Caught on Video Assaulting Conservative Berkeley Student While Fellow Students Laugh.
● Journalist Andy Ngo Beaten Up at Portland Antifa Rally.
● John Dickerson, the host of Face the Nation and the “political director” for CBS, wrote an article for Slate in 2013 charmingly titled “Go for the Throat! Why if he wants to transform American politics, Obama must declare war on the Republican Party.”
VOTERS OUST CHESA BOUDIN AS DISTRICT ATTORNEY IN SAN FRANCISCO, NBC News Reports.
June 7, 2022
FLASHBACK: WaPo reporter sues paper for not assigning her to cover Kavanaugh matter.
Felicia Sommez is a reporter for the Washington Post — part of the Post’s stable of lefty journalists. She has contributed to some of the dishonest anti-Trump stories we’ve critiqued on Power Line. See here, for example.
Sommez has sued the Post and some of its editors for alleged discrimination and retaliation. Her core complaint is that she has not been assigned to cover stories about alleged sexual assault and harassment, including the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.
A few years ago, Sommez herself alleged that she was sexually assaulted by a bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times while she was drunk. Later, she spoke publicly about her experience as a “survivor” of sexual assault.
As a result of her experience and her advocacy, the Post apparently barred her from covering such allegations by others. The Post’s theory, it seems, was that Sommez’s experience might affect her reporting or at least create the perception that her reporting was slanted.
Sommez says that as a result of missing out on these assignments, including the Kavanaugh story, her career has been harmed. In addition, she claims to have been “humiliated” to the point of suffering emotional distress and requiring therapy.
Also from last year: Journalists Are “Centering” Their “Trauma” Because It Enables Them To Acquire Power.
We can just take Sonmez at her word and grant that this professional adult journalist genuinely did undergo the debilitating trauma she described, vacant staring spells and all. It’s impossible to judge the precise veracity of these trauma-related claims anyway, given how inextricable they are with the interior mental state of the individual in question. So we’ll have to just accept that Sonmez being “attacked online,” as she put it, really did result in the kind of extraordinary psychological turmoil she says she experienced. (Here’s some additional background information on the other alleged sources of Sonmez’s trauma.) What can be judged, however — and what has to be judged given its rapidly increasing prominence in public life — is the wider impact of the rhetorical style used so adroitly by Sonmez. Because it very clearly gets results. Call it therapeutic trauma jargon.
And she’s still going strong today:
