Theory of the Leisure Class

Seems to fit nicely.
In the past, people displayed their membership of the upper class with their material accoutrements. But today, luxury goods are more affordable than before. And people are less likely to receive validation for the material items they display. This is a problem for the affluent, who still want to broadcast their high social position. But they have come up with a clever solution. The affluent have decoupled social status from goods, and re-attached it to beliefs.

...And yet, he observes, this isn’t enough for them. Not only do top university graduates want to be millionaires-in-the-making; they also want the image of moral righteousness. Peterson underlines that elite graduates desire high status not only financially, but morally as well. For these affluent social strivers, luxury beliefs offer them a new way to gain status.
Well worth reading.

It appears that a bunch of the asshats in the Senate have decided they override the Constitution

Y'know, that document they swore to uphold?  "WE can decide if something is Constitutional or not!"

No, you can't, asshole.  And that you think you can is proof you should be removed from that taxpayer-supplied office as soon as possible.  Preferably through a window, or if it's not far above ground, from the roof.

There are a lot of first-time gun buyers out there, or people

buying a new-to-them type, and I see lots of reminders of just how much a lot of them need to get some instruction.

Case in point: guy comes out of the range and says his friend is having a problem with his new revolver.  Grab the muffs and go in, "What's the problem?"

A bit of background for people not familiar with revolvers: a double-action revolver can be fired two ways:
First is to just press the trigger until the piece fires.  The trigger causes the cylinder to rotate to bring a chamber into line with the barrel, brings the hammer back, and then drops it when things are ready.  Double-action.

Second is to pull the hammer back until it locks.  That rotates the cylinder, and causes the trigger to move back to the firing position, giving a very light press to get bang.  Single-action.

What he thought was a problem was that when he cocked the hammer, the trigger moved back, and he thought it was supposed to stay all the way forward.  This just took a quick how-to and he was happily banging away.

Let's not get into the guy who put the cartridges into the magazine backward and then tried to insert the mag backward...*


*No, it wasn't an H&K

Found the corrupt racist

As an NAACP lawyer, Kristen Clarke lambasted the Justice Department for bringing a complaint against an African-American party boss in Mississippi who worked to suppress white votes, according to a federal probe. On a separate occasion, a federal oversight commission investigated claims that Clarke worked with allies at the Justice Department to quash the prosecution of the Black Panthers who menaced voters outside a Philadelphia precinct in 2008.
"Voter suppression is great when WE do it!"

'Justice' Department pick...

I need to catch up on posting some news, starting with "4th Amendment, dumbass, have you heard of it?"

In an important win for Fourth Amendment advocates, a Virginia man's arrest for refusing to show identification to the police has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal appellate court.



"It doesn't matter how many people died because of my orders, it's none of your business!"



Larry's take on that idiot Jeep commercial.

And, due to circumstances, that's all the news I've got time or stomach for.

Virginia Heffernan is what you get when you unperson- hell, unHUMAN- people for having a different political opinion

Oh, heck no. The Trumpites next door to our pandemic getaway, who seem as devoted to the ex-president as you can get without being Q fans, just plowed our driveway without being asked and did a great job.

How am I going to resist demands for unity in the face of this act of aggressive niceness?

Of course, on some level, I realize I owe them thanks — and, man, it really looks like the guy back-dragged the driveway like a pro — but how much thanks?

These neighbors are staunch partisans of blue lives, and there aren’t a lot of anything other than white lives in neighborhood.
Etc.  

Next: Neighbors find out that this bitch thinks they're just like national socialists and/or mid-east terrorist groups, stops helping her with stuff, and that will be further proof of what horrible people they are.

There are robins all over the place

the last couple of days; right now there's about twelve of them in the front yard.  Which is supposed to be a sign that winter's ending.

Supposed to be some serious cold over the next week.  It would be nice if it was the last of that crap.

Friend mentioned a gecko showing up at her new digs, and it reminded me

of this.  If you haven't read this before, you're in for a treat.  If you have but it's been a while, read it again; it's good for a cold night.

Really surprised this hasn't happened before

Starnes admitted to shooting 20-year-old Timothy Wilks. Police were told that Wilks and a friend approached a group of people, including Starnes with butcher knives.

 The incident is said to have been a prank robbery for a YouTube video, however, Starnes reportedly did not know and shot Wilks.
Even discounting concealed-carry being so common, there are people out there who would not react well to crap like this, and have the background to do something about it.

More data

You carry on, I need some sleep.

Public officials who need to be hanged, another Boston edition

Ismay’s direct quote is: “So let me say that again, 60% of our emissions that need to be reduced come from you, the person across the street, the senior on fixed income, right … there is no bad guy left, at least in Massachusetts to point the finger at, to turn the screws on, and you know, to break their will, so they stop emitting. That’s you. We have to break your will. Right, I can’t even say that publicly.”

Question now: is the Governor actually upset with him saying it, or that it got out to the general peasantry?

Once again, the desire for 'hate crimes' far exceeds

the supply.  To the great upset of the race mongers.
Nevertheless, Tanya Jachimiak — the head of the Office of Institutional Equity — told the Lansing State Journal that a committee is currently “looking at how and where our policy is able to address and be part of the solution to breaking down systems of oppression.”

Similarly, in spite of an average of less than two racial bias incidents per year, several departments and schools at Michigan State recently released statements and calls to action against racism.
"There IS a real problem, don't you dare think you can get by without us!"

Due to circumstances,

data's in and I have nothing clever(or approaching) to say

"Public schools are a form of child abuse" is becoming

more and more true.  What's being taught in YOUR schools?


Remember that 'whistleblower hero' of the Covidians in Florida?  They have lousy heroes.

The PRC is really getting their moneys worth out of the Bidens

The United States, however, has a new president. And President Joe Biden is making his space policy preferences increasingly clear: America will remain grounded for the time being.

Point out Greta is a mentally-troubled kid being used for political purposes, and you're 'attacking a child/girl!';

And then there's this.
Greta Thunberg accidentally shared a message showing she was getting told what to write on Twitter about the ongoing violent farmers’ revolt in India — leading Thursday to her being probed for criminal conspiracy by police there, according to reports.

The 18-year-old left-wing eco-activist shared — and then quickly deleted — a message that detailed a list of “suggested posts” about the ongoing protests, according to the posts that were saved by Breaking 911.

The list gave a series of tips on what to post, asking her to also repost and tag other celebrities tweeting about it, including pop star Rihanna.
Seems a lot of people in India aren't real happy about having a bunch of foreigners, especially celebrities, screwing around with stuff happening in their country, too.

Well, he does fit right in with Biden

Joe Cotchett, the Joe Biden fundraiser and longtime friend who is largely responsible for the Biden administration’s upcoming federal judge picks, was accused by his ex-wife in his divorce case of physically abusing his children and making his daughters uncomfortable for walking around naked in front of them.


This sounds like a very good idea.
This proposal includes imposing a daily $100,000 fine on any tech company that chooses to deplatform a candidate running for office in Florida during an election cycle. It also would ensure that tech oligarchs record their promotions of certain candidates as campaign contributions with the Florida Elections Commission, a punishment DeSantis said fits the crime.


Trust Fauci?  Why the hell would I do that?


To everyone who ignored Obama's actions and screamed about 'Trump putting children in cages!',
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

And last, 'trust the science and experts!' only holds when they say what Democrats want to hear.
But I wasn’t given the chance to say any of that. After Casten and Huffman lied about me, Rep. Garret Graves asked the committee’s chairperson, Rep. Kathy Castor of Florida, to let me respond. She refused and abruptly ended the hearing.

What, exactly, had I said that was so dangerous as to lead Democrats to engage in character assassination and undermine liberal democratic norms? Nothing I hadn’t already said last January when I testified before Congress about climate change and energy.

Back then, I testified that climate change is real but isn’t the end of the world nor even our most important environmental problem. I pointed to the inherent physical reasons renewables can’t power a high energy industrial civilization. And I noted that cheap and abundant natural gas and nuclear, not industrial solar and wind, have been the big drivers of emissions reductions.

I further made the case that climate change was distracting us from a far greater and more urgent threat, which is the global domination of nuclear energy by China and Russia, which could be disastrous for US interests and the future of liberalism and democracy around the world.

Given: Occasional-Cortex is a screeching drama queen. Now, the question is

Is she just lying to keep herself in the news and slander people, or is she actually stupid enough to believe this crap?

Inquiring minds want to know

Speaking of asshats, journalists who want to destroy the 1st Amendment

the depend on because 'Someone said something I don't approve of and I want them shut up!"

Don't know about you, I'm truly sick of these hypocritical shitheads.

If you still believe anything Fauci says,

what the hell's wrong with you?
If you’re getting confused, you’re not alone, because a mere five days after saying that double-masking was “common sense,” Fauci seemed to walk back that statement.

“There are many people who feel, you know if you really wanna have an extra little bit of protection ‘maybe I should put two masks on.’ There’s nothing wrong with that, but there’s no data that indicates that that is going to make a difference. and that’s the reason why the CDC has not changed their recommendations.”

Had to deal with a guy wearing two masks today: not only that, he didn't want to get anywhere near anyone else AND spoke with his normal voice, which means you couldn't understand what the hell he was saying.  

Fauci needs to shut up and go the hell away.