IT’S GETTING CROWDED UP THERE: Chinese satellite got whacked by hunk of Russian rocket in March. “Thirty-seven debris objects spawned by the smashup have been detected to date, and there are likely others that remain untracked.”
Author Archive: Stephen Green
August 18, 2021
MOSTLY OUR PRIDE AND PLACE IN THE WORLD: Here’s What Biden’s Shameless Afghanistan Speech Cost Taxpayers.
BIDEN’S MESS: Afghans are racing to erase their online lives.
“We are stuck here,” he says. “We don’t know what will happen.” When he learned the Taliban had arrived in the capital city on August 15 he immediately burned some of the documents that showed he had worked for the United States. Now, like so many Afghans, he is trying to find a way out.
Others who have worked with the US have kept documents but hidden them, knowing that such paperwork is vital to gain a visa and a potential route out of Afghanistan. But it remains a horrific quandary: Taliban militia are already reportedly going door-to-door to find those who have worked with foreign governments and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Muhibullah – who, for obvious reasons, WIRED is not naming fully – is one of millions of Afghans now tussling with an impossible choice: to what extent should they erase any evidence of their past lives now that the ultra-conservative Taliban are the new rulers of Afghanistan?
Read the whole thing.
KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEF: Shame We Can’t Use the 25th Amendment on All of Team Biden. “While I would never presume to understand what goes on in the minds of Democrats, at this point I would wager that most of Biden’s Cabinet members are opposed to the Cackle Queen stepping into Amtrak Joe’s loafers. I also wouldn’t be surprised to find out that she’s bringing up the 25th Amendment 40 or 50 times a day.”
MATT TAIBBI: Afghanistan: We Never Learn. “Every image coming out of Afghanistan this past weekend was an advertisement for the incompetence, arrogance, and double-dealing nature of American foreign policy leaders. Scenes of military dogs being evacuated while our troops fire weapons in the air to disperse humans desperate for a seat out of the country will force every theoretical future ally to think twice about partnering with us.”
MORE OF A REMINDER, REALLY: Afghanistan Catastrophe Exposes Democrats’ Elitism and Incompetence.
August 17, 2021
JOANNE JACOBS: ‘If your 3rd grader can’t read, that’s a problem.’
Post-pandemic education needs to get out of the spin room and focus on tackling “unfinished” or “interrupted” or “missed” learning, writes Dale Chu. Or “learning lag” or “learning recovery” or . . .
“Those who are wary of “learning loss” posit that it stigmatizes an entire generation of children — especially those from poor, Black, and Hispanic communities,” he writes.
Educators seem a lot more concerned about CYAs than ABCs.
LOOK FOR THE EXPIRATION DATE: Under International Pressure, Taliban Says It Will Grant ‘Amnesty’ to All.
ROBERT SPENCER: Emboldened China Warns Taiwan: ‘The Island’s Defense Will Collapse’ and the ‘U.S. Military Won’t Come to Help.’ “While no one will be fired or even reprimanded for our disastrous exit from Afghanistan, much less for the insane decision to stay there for twenty years without having a clear idea of victory or any coherent endpoint in China, they’re paying very close attention and learning one of the obvious lessons of the last few days.”
WELL, IT SHOULD: Afghanistan takeover sparks concern from NATO allies.
They told me if I voted for Donald Trump, our allies would lose all confidence in our staying power — and they were right!
VODKAPUNDIT PRESENTS INSANITY WRAP: Xi’s Up, Joe’s Down.
Plus:
- The CCP takes a board seat in Facebook’s factchecker
- Biden’s Pentagon has a plan for everything except the things it needs to do
- Face the Nation: Ford shows Biden how it’s done
So much more at the link, you’d have to be crazy to miss it.
HE’S GOT YOUR BACK — WITH A KNIFE: Biden Goes Full America-Last, Won’t Prioritize Getting Americans Out of Kabul Over Afghans.
Although to be completely fair, Biden extended the Trump agreement by three months yet still managed to do that thing Barack Obama warned us about.
BRYAN PRESTON: Biden’s Speech on Afghanistan Was Terrible, But This Part Made the Least Sense of All. “Not only is Biden withdrawing U.S. military forces from Afghanistan relatively early in his presidency, he’s withdrawing during the country’s well-known fighting season. Withdrawing in winter, instead of summer, would likely have led to a different outcome, especially if the withdrawal had been planned well and that plan executed in concert with our NATO allies.”
PROGRESSIVE ENTERPRISES ARE CESSPITS OF RACISM, EXHIBIT #1,000,006: A Twitter exec told an Asian-American employee she could pass as white if she wore sunglasses after she spoke out about the company’s lack of diversity, a report says.
PJ MEDIA VIP ROUNDUP: Don’t forget that VODKAPUNDIT promo code if you’ve been thinking of joining us.
Matt Margolis: The Price of Incompetence: Biden Is Losing the Never-Trumpers. “Perhaps the most interesting criticism comes from Meghan McCain. While Trump will never be in her good graces, her endorsement of Joe Biden for his character and experience just imploded in epic fashion.”
Kruiser and KDJ: ‘Unwoke’ With Kevin and Kruiser #7: A Family Farewell, a Cuomo Conspiracy, and a Classic Highball.
Yours Truly: Oh God, Not Like This. “Presidentish Joe Biden told people just like the ones being shed from that cargo plane like so much detritus that he had a plan for getting them out. He did not.”
JUST THINK OF IT AS YET ANOTHER CRISIS BY DESIGN:
I try my best not to underestimate Joe’s ability to f*** things up but his talent is boundless.
KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEF: Oldest President Ever But There’s No Adult In Charge. “I recently read something that referred to America as being ‘rudderless’ at the moment. That’s not entirely true. The above-mentioned cabal of progressive special interests is in charge, but it’s focused on a lemming run off the leftist cliff.”
BETTER AT HIRING LAWYERS THAN BUILDING SPACESHIPS: Blue Origin takes SpaceX lunar lander contract fight with NASA to federal court.
For perspective, after one failed flight in 2019, Boeing’s oft-delayed Starliner had spent more time in space than Blue Origin has in its entire 20-year existence.