COURTS ARE INCREASINGLY STACKED AGAINST MEN: Wintery Knight (WK) launches a revealing piece on judicial prejudice against men with a story from Scotland in which judges there are reported to be disallowing admission of evidence that tends to establish male defendants’ innocence in cases brought against them by women.

But the same problem appears to be intensifying here in the states, judging by studies WK cites. For example, sentencing appears to result in harsher punishment for me in 63 percent of the cases, compared to women defendants.

And when WK broaches the issue with folks one might well expect to at least be attentive, here, too often, is the result: “Whenever I tell social conservatives about the effect that this bias against men is having on men’s willingness to engage with women (romantically, professionally, etc.), they go silent.”

The expectation of absolute fairness and impartiality in the courtroom is not a new thing. As WK notes, Leviticus 19:15 set a high standard for ancient Israel: “You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor.”

JOIN THE LA ‘PAYWATCH’ LIFEGUARDS AND MAKE A FORTUNE: Open the Books updates its 2021 report on the highly lucrative work of lifeguards working the beaches of Los Angeles County. The update today shows things just keep getting worse. It’s my latest PJ Media column.

THEN THERE IS THE INFORMATION ENIGMA: Atoms/Electrons/Neutrons/Photons are not the most foundational units of the universe, it’s the preceding information that defines and shapes them that is the starting point.

So where does that information come from, how does it “happen”? Check out “The Information Enigma” on HillFaith. It’s a 21 minute exploration of the possible answers to that question, as produced by the Discovery Institute, with superb production quality, probing questions and engaging graphics. And not a speck of preaching.

Yes, it’s a bit long, but I promise you it will spark some serious reflection and challenging conversation as you, your family and friends lounge on the beach, cast your lines into the lake or stream, fire up the grill and enjoy the fireworks as we collectively celebrate the 249th year of the greatest nation on God’s green Earth.

IT’S EVEN WORSE IN IRAN THAN YOU THINK: The essence of totalitarianism is its unquestionable claim to direct every aspect of every individual’s life. That is exactly the nature of the radical Islamic regime in Iran, which demands and enforces loyalty from the day of birth of every Iranian.

But, as Marziyeh Amirizadeh explained earlier this week on The Washington Stand’s “Outstanding” podcoast, hope is dawning for a new day in Iran. A major factor in the growing underground of resistance to the Mullahs is the remarkable and largely unreported upsurge in Christian converts in this Shia Muslim nation.

And, just as the Nazis built concentration camps for Jews and everybody else who dissented from National Socialism, the Soviet’s sent millions of dissidents against communism to the Gulag and Mao’s Cultural Revolution targeted the Four Olds for destruction, the Mullahs employ intimidation, torture, and extreme brutality against brave people like Marzi. The Washington Stand’s Casey Harper reports.

INSTAPUNDIT READERS ARE THE BEST: My thanks to Drew Foerster in the LA area and multiple others for pointing out that I incorrectly described Iran’s regime as Sunni Muslim when in fact it is of the Shia brand. And the Best Correction Award goes to TeaPartyLee, for noting that at least I didn’t refer to them as Subaru Muslims!

And BTW, check out that 1966 Charlton Heston movie in which he portrayed the Brit General Gordon of Khartoum. I think (but am not sure) that the Madhi in that one was thought by his followers to be the Shia savior.  

ABORTION POLLUTES WATER SUPPLY, TOO: Bet ya didn’t know that America’s water supply systems may being polluted thanks to the abortion pill Mifepristone. The Washington Stand’s Ben Johnson has the details.

And this ought to raise all kinds of extremely uncomfortable but essential questions: “Sanitation officials have found fully formed fetuses inside waste water facilities in South Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Mississippi.”

CHINA NOT SUBJECT TO NUKE LIMITS: Russia, the U.S. and other nuclear nations — Britain, India, Pakistan, etc. — are signers of the Reagan-era inspired New START treaty. That puts a ceiling on the total of warheads and launchers a signer can deploy.

But China has never signed on to the treaty, which means, according to Rod Martin and his guest author, Antonia Graceffo, that the CCP’s current nuke buildup can go as far as Beijing can afford.

That fundamentally changes the nuclear calculus that has obtained since the 1980s, including most immediately the need for the U.S. to deploy that “Star Wars” missile defense system Reagan called for decades ago.

It may well prove to be that Reagan’s greatest contribution was not winning the Cold War and bringing about the Soviet Union’s demise, as historically important as that was, but rather his defying the near-unanimous reaction among the “expert” class that it would be impossible to intercept an incoming ballistic missile. America has THAAD and Patriot anti-missile missile systems today because Reagan ignored the experts.

IS SOCIAL MEDIA A NET NEGATIVE? You are not going to believe the results on this question among congressional aides.

ONE THING THE UN GOT RIGHT: It was 80 years ago today that the UN Charter was signed in San Francisco. What followed has been for the most part either laughable or destructive of world peace. But, as Rod Martin explains on Substack, the international body has succeeded on one vitally important point.

BITCOIN AND YOUNG GUYS: There is a hugely important reason why young men are displaying great enthusiasm for Bitcoin. Cygnal Polling’s Ryan Shucard explains:

“Voters who own Bitcoin are younger, much more male, more educated, more Republican, and higher income than likely general election voters as a whole. They are equally diverse (almost exactly tracking the racial breakdown of voters) but are also lower-propensity voters.”

Much more in the Cygnal results that should be encouraging to friends of freedom.

5 REASONS TRUMP SHOULD TELL NOBEL WHERE TO SHOVE IT: Yes, Trump has done wonders on the foreign policy scene in recent months, brokering ceasefires between India and Pakistan, as well as Iran and Israel. And so it’s no surprise he’s nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

But here are four reasons, according to Issues & Insights, Trump should withdraw his nomination: Al Gore, Jimmy Carter, Yasser Arafat and Rigobertha Menchu. And here’s the fifth:

“But more embarrassing than all of these (as well as other dubious winners such as Le Duc Tho, Henry Kissinger, the European Union, Mikhail Gorbachev – not Reagan – etc.) is that Trump would be accepting a prize that was given to Barack Obama nine months into his presidency on the basis of …. absolutely nothing.”

PROPOSAL TO PUT CONGRESS ON A DAVE RAMSEY BUDGET PLAN: And if either Congress or the President screw it up, it’s no more tax-paid junkets for you! It’s my latest for The Washington Stand.

EXPERTS WARN OF POTENTIAL DANGER OF BETTING FIRM WITH TRUMP TIES: If you’ve never heard of Kalshi, Inc., you likely will be soon because it’s unlike any other betting enterprise ever. Kalshi makes it possible to bet on any “event” that happens or may happen. In other words, it makes it possible to bet on everything.

But here’s what really makes Kalshi interesting: One of its board members, Brian Quintenz, was nominated by President Donald Trump to the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in February, a month after Donald Trump Jr. was signed on as a consultant.

In an exclusive report today, The Washington Stand’s S.A. McCarthy lays out the details of what could easily become a major scandal in Trump’s second term, including the fact that “economists, attorneys, and both advocates and opponents of predatory gambling are sounding the alarm over Kalshi’s potential to radically destabilize the U.S. economy if one of its board members is placed on the commission that’s supposed to regulate the betting company.”

BIDEN TELEWORK ABUSES CONFIRMED: A new analysis by the Inspector-General (IG) at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) confirms serious teleworking abuses by more than half of the employees at the federal government’s central human resource agency.

NOW WE MAY KNOW HOW MANY SLEEPER CELLS BIDEN ENABLED: Now that President Donald Trump has obliterated Iran’s nuclear bomb-making facilities, we may well find out in coming days just how many terrorist sleeper cells were able to enter this country during the Biden era. It’s my hurriedly posted PJMedia column.

EIGHT VIP CHARACTERISTICS: J. Warner Wallace is one of the most successful cold-case homicide detectives ever. For years, he was featured on NBC’s “Dateline” explaining how he solved a particular old and challenging case. He knows good and bad evidence when he sees it.

Thanks to that ability to assess the value of evidence, Wallace has also become one of the best-known Christian apologists in the world. On HillFaith today, Wallace discusses eight characteristics of evidence he has found that indicate purposefulness rather than random chance.

Fortunately, Instapundit has a wonderfully intelligent readership that can offer reasonable arguments for and against a multitude of thoughtful views, including Wallace’s eight characteristics. That, rather than ad hominem for or against, is what I seek in posting this link.

SHOW YOUR WORK, CHILDREN: Apparently, somebody at the Washington Post thinks their readers don’t need to know the demographic details of respondents to a survey that purports to show 2-1 public opposition to Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.

The Washington Stand talks to an international pollster who says showing your work in the details of your sample is essential to being credible. And no surprise, a spokesman for the Post could not be reached.

IF CBO KEEPS GETTING IT WRONG: Then, doesn’t it make sense to change how CBO does its work? That’s what a bunch of folks on Capitol Hill are saying, including especially House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas).

NO, SLAVES DID NOT BUILD AMERICA’S WEALTH: Today is Juneteenth, the day that commemorates the moment slaves in Texas first got word of Lincoln’s signing the Emancipation Proclamation. But the Left has taken what was before a celebration of freedom and corrupted it into a key part of the Great Lie about America.

That would be the lie that America is irretrievably evil because the Founders accepted slavery and in the decades thereafter it was slaves in the American South who built what has become the richest, most prosperous nation in human history.

Much has been written over the years about this lie, but nothing that this writer has ever read even begins to match the razor’s edge of fact and truth displayed in Rod Martin’s Substack column today, entitled “Juneteenth: No, America’s Wealth Was Not Built by Slaves – Slavery Held Us Back.” 

THE INCREDIBLE STORY OF MOSSAD IN IRAN: The most unappreciated aspect of Israel’s remarkable success against Iran is the reality that for months before the current hostilities began, Mossad agents were roaming inside the former Persian empire.

Richard Pollock talked to somebody who knows a great deal of how this happened and continues happening today. Here’s a small sample:

“One who is talking about this omission and is dialed into this extraordinary military campaign is John Spencer. He currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point and is Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project,

“Spencer told me that, indeed, Mossad is continuing to aggressively and freely operate throughout Iran. ‘Most mainstream media treat Mossad’s presence in Iran as something that happened in the past. That is a fundamental misunderstanding of the current reality,’ he said.

“’Mossad has a long track record of building deep operational infrastructure inside enemy territory. There is every indication that those networks are still in place and active. They are likely supporting real-time targeting of regime leadership, missile systems, and mobile launchers, while also disrupting Iranian internal security from within,’ he told me.”

There is more, much more. Joshua and Caleb, veterans of a previous notable Israeli spy operation, are grinning ear to ear.

AND SPEAKING OF THE WASHINGTON STAND: California officials have shoveled tens of millions of tax dollars to five key Far Left non-profit activist groups that are supporting the violent and continuing anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles and elsewhere across the nation.

KERSHAW REMINDS MLB WHO CREATED THE RAINBOW: You may have seen one of the several Major League Baseball team “celebrations” of Pride Month. Los Angeles Dodgers’ star pitcher Clayton Kershaw’s response to the LGBQTetc.etc.etc. tyrants reintroduced them to a hugely significant fact, as The Washington Stand’s Suzanne Bowdey explains.

WANT TO MAKE BEAUCOUP BUCKS? Set up shop with a moving company to help the millions of Americans who are waving bye-bye to the 10 states, plus the District of Columbia, that top the list of Sanctuary jurisdictions. That is, those jurisdictions that refuse to allow local and state law enforcement work with federal immigration authorities against illegal immigrant criminals.

Data featured by Issues & Insights pegs the number of movers from those areas since 2020 at 3.1 million. Here’s a partial breakdown:

“New York alone saw 966,209 leave. Illinois lost 418,056, and Minnesota lost 47,930. California is the all-time leader – it suffered a net loss of more than 1.2 million over those years. In fact, the top five population losers are all sanctuary states.

“Just two sanctuary states – Vermont and Colorado – eked out population gains … a mere 37,000 in total. In contrast, of the 12 states ranked by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center as having the least friendly to illegal immigrants, 10 had huge net gains in population from 2020 to 2024 – totaling 2.9 million.”

CBO REFORM PUSH GATHERS STEAM: Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wisc.) and a bipartisan coalition of House colleagues are sponsoring the “Stop the Baseline Bloat Act of 2025.” The measure focuses on an admittedly obscure problem — the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) considering emergency spending as permanent — about which most people couldn’t care less.

But that obscurity doesn’t negate the importance of what the Grothman proposal does – banning CBO from including temporary spending in long-term projections. The reason its important is fatter baselines help the legions of congressional sufferers from Federal Spending Addiction (FSA) keep increasing their fixes.

The fact there are co-sponsors from both parties on this one is an encouraging sign that perhaps sanity is mounting a comeback on the House floor.

MAGA-TIME IN VACCINE LAND: Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. just demonstrated that the familiar complaint that nobody in Washington ever gets fired is not always accurate.

The Heritage Foundation’s Robert Moffit makes the casein The Daily Signal that RFK’s firing all 17 Biden-appointed members of the Advisory Committee on Vaccination Practices is illustrative of exactly what is needed and what the public health lobby most fears

THE LEFT’S RIOTS ARE JUST GETTING STARTED: Richard Pollock knows a thing or three about how and why the Left so often seeks to spark riots such as have been going on for a week now in Los Angeles. Richard once was one of those on Left who sparked riots.

In his latest Substack column, he looks at the LA violence and observes how familiar the present riots appear in the context of Saul Alinsky’s handbook for political violence, “Rules for Radicals:”

Alinsky explained how radical activists can and must create political chaos in modern Western societies. His first main observation is that truth really doesn’t matter. Alinsky openly counseled his minions, ‘To begin with, he (the revolutionary) does not have a fixed truth – truth to him is relative and changing; everything to him is relative and changing.’ (italics is in original)

“Just as distressing, Alinsky’s revolutionary radicals have a particularly nasty point of view about ethics. ‘The rule of ethics of means and ends is that in war, the end justifies almost any means,’ Alinsky wrote in his book. ‘Ethical standards must be elastic to stretch with the times.’

“’Generally, success or failure is a mighty determinant of ethics,’ Alinsky counseled. He told activists, ‘you do what you can with what you have and clothe it with moral garments.’

“Alinsky further argues that morality of using certain tactics shouldn’t be a primary factor. ‘The morality of a means depends upon whether the means is being employed at a time of imminent defeat or victory,’ he wrote. ‘In short, ethics are determined by whether one is losing or winning.'”

Just keep scrolling, as Glenn would say, because Richard sees a long, hot, destructive summer ahead.