Scattershots – 8jun19 (updated 11jun19)

George Rebane

California’s homeless population continues to grow; it now exceeds 130,000 and is heavily concentrated in metropolitan areas like LA, the Bay, and Sacramento with smaller scale infections even reaching rural counties like our own.  According to the feds, CA is now also #1 home for those without a home, and growing.  And the big surprise by our leftwing politicians and bureaucrats is that they can’t figure out why these numbers are going up given all the public monies that have and are being spent on welcoming benefits to CA’s indigents.  WSJ’s Alejandro Lazo describes the current situation in ‘Homelessness Grows in California Despite New Government Spending’.  The answer to this apparent conundrum is beyond simple – the homeless of the country are infinitely smarter than the double dummies who make up our electeds and bureaucrats in Sacramento.  If you’re homeless, or illegal, or on welfare, or a criminal, or …, why not head for the Idiots Paradise that sanctifies, succors, and salutes every kind of person whose vote can be bought with monies taken from the state’s well-to-do and remaining middle-class wage earners?

The Dems are pulling in the big bucks from the country’s corporatists. Companies like Google, Amazon, Facebook, … are giving tens of millions to progressive candidates in hopes that they won’t get hurt too badly in Washington's growing anti-trust sentiment that threatens to break up the big guys.  The Left’s complaint is that open markets are not working, capitalism is broken, and Big Brother needs to step in to make things right.  The denied truth is that government hasn’t promoted open markets for at least 30 years.  So, there is no reason to pass more legislation to enlarge govt watchdog bureaus and staffs to mangle more markets, just step back from accepting corporatist payola, and enforce existing laws against monopolies and oligopolies.  But doing that would dry up the inflow of funds into corrupt pockets.  As an example, today Sens Warren and Sanders have each received more than $30M from Google’s parent Alphabet.  The interesting part is that the ill-read younger employees of the behemoths are contributing much of the money that will be used to buy the rope to hang them after socialism sweeps Silicon Valley. (more here and here)

Unclear about working out their futures are both our Millennials and the Europeans.  Fundamentally, both are afflicted by the same mental rot.  See comment stream below and the graphic sent to me by a reader in response to the above scattershot.  A picture is worth a thousand ... (and all that).

[10jun19 update]  Politicians of all stripes like to tell us what “the American people” like, reject, demand, deserve, think, ignore, want, … .  However, those of us who have paid attention over the years know that the more certain a politician is assuring us about the sentiments of the American people, the more sure we can be that he’s spewing BS on thin ice.  Author Joe Epstein agrees – “There’s no shortage, I realize, of ways of detecting falsity in contemporary politicians, but I’ve come upon one that I find most helpful. The more politicians use the phrase “the American people,” I believe, the less they are to be trusted.” (more here)

The double dummies in Sacramento are now planning on spending billions to provide “complete healthcare” to the state’s illegal aliens according to the AP (here).  California seeks to retain its position as the nation’s idiot state, emplacing more policies to attract the indigent, the under-educated, the welfare recipient, the illegal alien, the criminal, …, and then wonders why it needs higher taxes and more regulations which convince middle-class workers and their employers to leave the state.  It will cost $3.4B to provide such healthcare coverage to include the 1.8M illegals now in California.  How many more will arrive as a result is anybody’s guess, but not anticipated by our state’s legislative super-majority.  Here’s a sample of the thinking behind this legislation – “The state Senate wants to cover adults ages 19 to 25, plus seniors 65 and older. That bill’s sponsor, Sen. Maria Elana Durazo, scoffed at cost concerns, noting the state has a projected $21.5 billion budget surplus.”  So we’re again spending projected surpluses which have a horrible record of not arriving, while ignoring all the collateral costs that this invited ingress will incur as an ever larger share of California’s population is made up of professional gimmes.  (And here is more about soaking the middle class and taxing the rich.)  But we all know how they will vote, don't we?

Women of color remain victims in America, so maintains “ZORA”, a new “publication that centers on and celebrates the hopes, dreams, aspirations, and experiences of women of color”.  Zora is one of many newly minted online outlets promoted by Medium, itself a menagerie of Marxist missives from Millennials who regularly exhibit there the horrific educational deficits they have suffered in unionized government schools, bequeathed us by the Great Society.  Their raison d’etre is to “challenge the stereotypes and outdated tropes associated with women of color” through offerings that provide a “multi-textured, multilayered, multifaceted take on life as a woman of color.”  I provide these links to readers as yet one more witness to the broad spectrum of inputs from which I and other well-read RR readers benefit.  As such, reciprocity is recommended to our leftwing brethren in order to elevate their discourse in these pages.

[11jun19 update]  Another more succinct perspective on socialism.

Trans Athletes Debate – The BBC will air a documentary at the end of this month to explore the trans athlete issue which now impacts primarily women’s sports competitions.  The documentary – ‘Trans Athletes: A Fair Playing Field?’ - will feature Martina Navratilova on the BBC One channel.  For those new to this issue, the problem is that natural female athletes who have spent their careers training to be champions in their sports are now left in the dust by trans-female athletes.  These competitions are inherently unfair to the women, and illustrate the undeniable fact that men and women are different, even after having their plumbing altered.  We don’t hear much about trans-male athletes competing in individual male sporting events, mainly because they don’t have chance to shine.  But to make progressive political hay, we do have examples of trans-males insisting on being on the men’s football teams where their inherent physical handicaps can be camouflaged in team play.  Nevertheless, their coaches and teammates know that the trans-males don’t carry their weight in such competitions.  My own opinion is that once you become a trans anything, that you forfeit your right to compete in your chosen gender sporting events.  If we get enough transgender athletes, then perhaps they can start their own sports leagues and individual competition events to maintain level playing fields.

Comments

[Wayne Hullett]

I am at a loss to understand why the CEOs of large corporations, who certainly understand the benefits of capitalism and the dangers of socialism, and having so benefited from the former, would allow large contributions to folks who, if they win, will certainly raid their own personal fortunes. Any enlightening thoughts appreciated.

[George Rebane]

WayneH 1157am - I stand with you equally baffled. All I can offer is that most of them were educated in Great Society schools ensconced in the land of plenty - their knowledge base of competing social organizations and forms of governance ranges somewhere between extremely biased to bare. Somehow, like the business people of czarist Russia post-1918 and the business people of eastern Europe post-1945, our young corporate mavens think that by kowtowing early to socialist politicians will somehow spare them in the aftermath.

[Bill Tozer]

Homeless problem? Blame business. They have been dumping trash on our streets!

https://news.grabien.com/story-nbc4-la-streets-shame-series-la-mayor-blames-businesses-not

I am old enough to remember when LA banned businesses from hosing down the sidewalks in front of their shops to rid the entrances of the stench of urine....because it violated the homeless’ rights or somethang. But, blame businesses. They been tossing their trash on the streets in front of their shops, lol. Those our our streets and the Mayor owns it.

[Don Bessee]

They did it, they really did it -

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/california-democrats-full-health-benefits-illegal-immigrants-trump

;-)

[Walt]

Well Emery,, your Blue folk in the county ready to pay for this?
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/06/10/california-lawmakers-plan-give-health-benefits-illegal-immigrants/
"The legislature has a June 15 deadline and is expected to approve the deal in the coming days. It essentially extends eligibility to California’s Medicaid program to young low-income illegal immigrants between the ages of 19 and 25. The move is part of a broader budget plan, which clocks in around $213 billion.
Expanding California’s Medicaid program to low-income illegals would cost the state about $98 million per year. According to the Associated Press, roughly 90,000 will qualify."

Meanwhile plenty of AMERICAN citizens, right here , have trouble getting the same.
You know,, the stuff WE pay for via the state tax man. I'm sure you will be happy to shell out more.. Just tax the dope growers
They have plenty of money.

[Bill Tozer]

Re: Unclear about working out their futures.

The news of the Border Patrol catching a MS-13 gang member was disturbing because the animal was carrying a year and a half old child infected with chicken pox. What was more disturbing was the animal was not the baby’s parent or relative. Grab a baby, declare asylum.

Pretty much sums up the Left Logic.

https://m.facebook.com/PatriotPost/photos/a.82108390913/10156421545090914/?type=3&source=54

[Walt]

ANY kind of economic good news and trade agreements (Good things for America) are the LIBS worst nightmare. Gotta stop them at all costs or Trump wins in a landslide.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/06/11/steve-moore-predicts-40-state-re-election-landslide-trump-china-deal-happens/

[Bill Tozer]

Nevada County dodges a bullet.....for now.

“CBS Sacramento reports that under Assembly Bill 891, which passed one house of California's legislature and is headed to the other, major cities and counties must "provide a safe parking lot, including access to bathrooms, to those with no place to stay.".........

“The bill was originally written to apply to all California counties, but a subsequent draft, which passed the California Assembly, limits the requirements only to cities and counties with more than 300,000 people. That includes Los Angeles, San Francisco, and about 35 other localities.”

[Bill Tozer]

Trans Athletes debate:

Way to go, progressives and other freaks. You are killing Women’s Sports. You are also denying opportunity for our daughters and crushing their hopes and dreams. You suck.

No need to rehash that males have more bone density, lung capacity, stronger and more elastic ligaments, blah, blah, blah than females. Add upper body strength. It’s more than just about hormone levels, you idiots.

I read an interview by the black dude who won the Connecticut women’s high school 100 meter championship. Made the news. He felt perfectly justified by winning the State finals. His rationalization (excuse) was that because the white female students can afford to have personal trainers, that gave the girls an edge....they have White Privilege and he doesn’t! A black male sprinter in the girl’s event was such an equalizer.

Give me a break. How many high school cross country and track runners have a personal coach? How many high school relay individuals or hurdlers have a personal trainer? That’s comes after high school. If we where talking about swimming, he might have a point. Country Club kids would have more year round access to swimming pools. But, the kicker was his pulling the White Privilege card, not fluid gender card sex card. Well, he went to the same school as the girls he beat and judging g by the pretty expensive ribbons in his hair, his parents have a few extra bucks.
—————————
Go ahead, ruin college women’s sports as well.

“Prior to joining the women’s team this season, Telfer was a mediocre DII athlete who never came close to making it to nationals in the men’s category. In 2016 and 2017, Telfer ranked 200th and 390th, respectively, among DII men in the 400 hurdles (Telfer didn’t run outdoor track in 2018 as either a man or woman). Now she’s the national champion in the event simply because she switched her gender (Telfer’s coach told us that even though she competed on the men’s team her first three years, her gender fluidity was present from her freshman year).

“The fact that Telfer can change her gender and immediately become a national champion is proof positive as to why women’s sports needs protection. Telfer ran slightly faster in the 400 hurdles competing as a man (57.34) than as a woman (57.53), even though the men’s hurdles are SIX INCHES TALLER (my emphasis) than the women’s hurdles. Yet when Telfer ran 57.34 as a man, she didn’t even score at her conference meet — she was just 10th at the Northeast-10 Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2016. Now she’s the national champion.”

https://www.letsrun.com/news/2019/05/what-no-one-is-telling-you-an-athlete-who-ran-ncaa-track-as-a-man-for-3-years-just-won-an-ncaa-womens-title/

[Bill Tozer]

Re: Unclear about working out their futures.

“In the wee hours of the morning recently, in a nearly deserted international airport terminal, I got into conversation with a fellow passenger while we waited for our luggage. He told me he was returning from a stay at an eco-resort. He said because of cloudy weather there had been no hot water on most days – and little hot water when there was any – and the electric light ran out every night soon after nightfall.

“The worst part for him, he said, was the requirement to put used toilet paper in a special container provided for that purpose. When I remarked that what he had experienced at the resort was what the Greens have planned for all of us, he cheerfully agreed. He went on to say that he believed the real purpose of the Greens’ plan is population control, that a truly green future would only be able to support a much smaller population.

“The amazing part is this: he conveyed a complete agreement with the environmentalist project and what he believed to be its underlying purpose. It seemed that what he had experienced at the resort had not caused him to re-think his attitude, or even to consider that there was a risk he might not survive the transition to a much smaller population.”

https://www.intellectualtakeout.org/article/hey-hey-ho-ho-western-civ-has-got-go