The Coronavirus Twenty-One Weeks Later - The Progressives Are On The March

Long serving (over 30 years) Democratic Representative Eliot Engel had already lost his primary election to Jamaal Bowman, who had the backing of Sanders, Warren and AOC. Engel had been a strong supporter of Israel. Bowman claims to also support Israel, but is opposed to the "ocupation." In other words, he does not support Israel. And, given the support of Socialist Sanders, and Warren and AOC, we can expect support for many leftist policy iniatives. Lacy Clay was a Democratic Representative in Missouri for 20 years, having won the seat his father held for 30 years. Clay, who is black, just lost his primary to Cori Bush, a black woman who has been part of the Black Lives Matter movement, and who was supported by...yep, the socialist Sanders.

Anti-America and anti-Israel Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar said this: "We can't stop at criminal justice reform or policing reform. We are not merely fighting to tear down the systems of oppression in the criminal justice system. We are fighting to tear down systems of oppression that exist in housing, in education, in health care, in employment, in the air we breathe." I've said it before, the Left is very good at propaganda with their use of carefully crafted phrases. Omar is not saying there is some unfairness - she is saying that in all aspects America is an oppressive country. Her audience understands very well what she means; if the country is oppressive, it must be torn down.

The progressives understand the need to inculcate left-wing ideology into the young. Here is a Tweet from Teen Vogue, which has over 13 million followers. "While we're working to abolish the police, we must also work to dismantle what the police were put here to protect: property." I'm a little unclear. Does this mean that I can walk into the Teen Vogue offices and walk out with any property that I choose? And police only protect property - not human life? In the 7/26/20 Sunday edition of the New York Times was one of their periodic "For Kids" sections. One article discusses a mural put up in Durango by a couple of women artists, with help from some neighborhood kids. In the center is a head of a black woman with a halo around the head. Above the head reads "Black Lives Matter." To the side we see "Enough is Enough," and "No Justice No Peace. "What messages are being conveyed? All blacks are angels? Blacks are constantly being targeted by the police? People should riot until there is justice, as the Left sees it? Virtually the entire section of the Times is encouraging kids to become left-wing activists.

Recall the scathing resignation letter by Bari Weiss, a liberal Op-Ed editor at the New York Times. And, the similar diatribe by Andrew Sullivan, after his termination by New York Magazine. Neither was sufficently "woke," "left-wing," "politically correct" for their respective publications. (See the 7/19/20 post.) Now, we have yet another employee of yet another mainstream media (i.e. left-wing, Democratic party) outlet also complaining of the left's intolerance for opposing views. This time, the offender is MSNBC. Explaining why she left, producer Ariana Pekary wrote: "I've even heard producers deny their role as journalists. A very capable senior producer once said: 'Our viewers don't really consider us the news. They come to us for comfort.'" And they say that Fox News is fake news.

Maureen Dowd is a regular Op-Ed columnist at the New York Times. In today's paper, Dowd wrote: "It's hard to fathom, but it has been 36 years since a man and a woman ran together on a Democratic party ticket. To use Geraldine Ferraro's favorite expression, 'Gimme a break!'" Ferraro was Walter Mondale's running mate in the 1984 election. I guess Dowd, along with whoever edits her columns, was not alive in 2016 - when Hillary Clinton ran with Tim Kaine. In the online version of this Op-Ed yesterday, a number of readers caught the error and commented accordingly.

Apparently, the Times then changed the online version to say "It has been that long since a man chose a woman to run as his vice president." Wrong again, as John McCain chose Sarah Palin in 2008. So what is going on here? We are talking about the New York Times, the self-described "paper of record." How do such falsehoods make it into an article like this? As I've said before, and as we have now been told by Bari Weiss, Andrew Sullivan and Ariana Pekary, when the agenda drives the story, truth and accuracy will always take a back seat.

Are "trigger warnings" the new normal? On the USA Network, I was greeted with this message: "We all love 90's buddy comedies...but this movie was created in a different time. FYI: Certain depictions, language and humor may seem outdated and at times offensive." Just what was the offending movie? "Rush Hour," with Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. Rush Hour? Admittedly, I cannot recall every scene from the movie, and I did not watch it again when it came on. But, really? A trigger warning for Rush Hour? How about all the snowflakes stay indoors and disconnect from the world. Problem solved.

Michigan's Democratic Governor was recently commenting on our latest health crisis. No, not the coronavirus pandemic. Silly. No, "racism" is a "public health crisis" according to the Governor. "We have a lot of work to do to eradicate the systemic racism that Black Americans have faced for generations." Maybe we need a civil war. Nope, did that. Maybe we need civil rights legislation. Nope, did that too. You have to love the Left - they talk like nothing has changed since 1619, when the first slaves were brought to the new world (according to the NY Times 1619 Project). The Governor issued an executive order establishing a "Black Leadership Advisory Council, which will be responsible for making policy recommendations.

Jerry Nadler (D-NY) is the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. As he was walking to his car, he was approached by someone identified as a writer/producer, and was asked if he would disavow violence by Antifa in Portland (something that Democrats have been reluctant to do, similar to their reluctance to criticize the violent and crime-ridden Occupy Wall Street movement). Nadler: "That's a myth." A myth? No violence in Portland the last two months? What Nadler did do, along with House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Dennie Thompson and House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, was sign on to a letter condemning the federal officers in Portland for their actions. It turns out that even the left-wing Mayor of Portland had enough of the violence. Here's Mayor Ted Wheeler: "When you commit arson with an accelerant in an attempt to burn down a building (it was a police precinct) that is occupied by people who you have intentionally trapped inside, you are not demonstrating, you are attempting to commit murder." I am curious about when the Democratic leadership might deem it worthwhile to criticize attempted murder.

One more piece of nonsense before we close. We know the countless lies the Dems and the mainstream media have told about Trump. He was going to start a war with Iran. He was going to start a nucear war with North Korea. Russian collusion, which they still talk about. But one of my "favorites" is the lie that Trump will not accept the results of the November election if he loses, and will have to forcibly be dragged from the White House. The hypocrisy is simply breathtaking. As I recall, the Democrats never accepted the results of the 2000 election. And, as we all know, they never accepted the results of the 2016 election - so much so, that they attempted a non-violent coup of a sitting president. Dems such as Hillary Clinton, Maxine Waters and James Clyborn, the third highest ranking Democratic member of the House, have all said Trump will not leave if he loses. Not that the mainstream media parrots whatever the Dems say, but here is April Ryan of CNN: When the TV shows Biden being inaugurated, there will be "police and armed forces trying to pull Donald Trump out of the White House. I cannot wait for that split-screen." And I can't think of a more disgusting wish by a so-called journalist than to see a President of the United States being dragged out of the White House. I've spoken to a lot people who have an extreme hatred of Trump. I wonder how many would like to see him dragged out of the White House and summarily executed. Sounds extreme, I know. But so does all the frightening vitriol and venom I hear out of the mouths of Democraats.