It's time to catch up on some news. So much has happened in the last two months, it would be impossible to address everything. So here are some highlights. Let's start with President Biden's state of the union address. No surprises, as he touted how great his administration is. That is to be expected. But, demonstrating how the Left believes there can never be too much government, he discussed making sure airlines had no hidden charges, reducing what banks may charge for overdraft fees, reducing credit card late fees, eliminating surprise "resort fees" at hotels, and putting a cap on service fees for tickets to concerts and sporting events. Sure, the public will like that. But where does government interference in business end?
Apparently, government involvement should never end for some on the Left. Here is Rep. Cori Bush, Squad member (Dem. - Mo.): "These social media companies have shown themselves unfit to maintain the digital public square with almost universal usage and vast power." "...we need to make sure that they operate for the public good and not the private interests." Conservatives would agree that the censoring of conservatives on social media has been a problem. But who would decide what constitutes the "public good?" Cori Bush? No, thank you.
What is Rep. Bush's solution? "We need to invest in better alternatives to big tech. And we need to establish public ownership and control to ensure these platforms serve everyone fairly." There it is - public/government ownership.
Nikole Hannah-Jones, of the "1619 Project" fame, was having an exchange of ideas with a Xi Van Fleet, a woman who survived Mao's China. Xi was trying to convince Hannah-Jones of American exceptionalism, which is imbued with the idea of natural rights. Xi argued that that idea allowed the US to abolish slavery, end Jim Crow, and establish a society where people like Xi and Hannah-Jones were able to succeed. Being no great fan of America, Hannah-Jones said: "I'm afraid your vision of America does not match the reality." Not surprising from a Leftist; yet ironic from a woman whose "1619 Project" has been widely debunked.
The State Bar of California has brought charges against attorney, and former Trump adviser, John Eastman. The Bar is seeking Eastman's disbarment. The Bar asserts that Eastman assisted Trump in "executing a strategy, unsupported by facts or law, to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election by obstructing the count of electoral votes of certain states." I don't like it. But let me be clear. I accepted that Biden won on election night. And I'm confident that I would disagree with much of the advice given by Eastman to Trump. But this is a dangerous incursion by the Bar into politics. And to many, such as myself, it would appear to be the Left targeting yet another conservative.
Here is yet more Leftist thinking, this time out of northern California. This is from the Acalanes Union High School District, which is just to the east of Berkeley and Oakland. There was an event being held for employees who are people of color. The Director of Student Support Equity and Inclusion had this to say: "Be reminded that we have avoided inviting people that are not of color as there remains feelings of uneasiness and mistrust and we need this to be a safe space for our people of color." I'm old enough to remember the Civil Rights movement. The idea was to oppose segregation and seek integration. Clearly, those days are over.
On the good news front, the City of Chicago held a mayoral election on February 28, and voted out the incompetent incumbent, Lori Lightfoot. As none of the other candidates received enough votes to win outright, the top two vote getters will be in a runoff election on April 4. Finishing with 33.5% of the votes was Paul Vallas, a white man who had been the head of the Chicago public schools. In second place was Brandon Johnson, a black man and Cook County commissioner. Vallas pledged to get tough on crime. Johnson, apparently, is not a fan of traditional policing. Both of these men are Democrats, hardly surprising for the City of Chicago. Lightfoot received only 17% of the vote. The real test will be how those 17% vote in the runoff. I am always amazed when people will vote for more crime, often for the simple reason that they will automatically vote for the person with a "D" after their name. (Although, as noted, both candidates in this race have that "D.")
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