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I appeared on Silvio Canto Jr's talk show from Dallas.  It's here.

NOVEMBER 15,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT: 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY – TO THE NEW YORK POST, THE OLDEST CONTINUALLY PUBLISHED NEWSPAPER IN THE UNITED STATES – FROM THE POST:  It was 220 years ago Tuesday, November 16, 1801, that the first issue of The Evening Post was delivered to 600 lucky subscribers in New York City.  It was a newspaper born in exile. Alexander Hamilton, former treasury secretary, had returned to Gotham out of power and disliked by members of his own party, the Federalists.  His political career was in tatters. If you’ve seen Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Hamilton,” go ahead and sing along: Hamilton had admitted to a torrid extramarital affair. He had publicly bashed the party’s leader, President John Adams. And in early 1801, Hamilton’s influence swayed the election to Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson. Adams didn’t agree with Jefferson, but thought him a man of principle and preferable to his opponent, Aaron Burr.  Hamilton was 43, with a wife and 8 children and only a law office to support them. Democratic-Republicans controlled the presidency and Congress. Newspapers were the primary way to spread political ideas, but the Federalist-leaning papers in New York were moribund. One, the Commercial Advertiser, was derided by another paper as “too drowsy to be of service to any cause; it is a powerful opiate.” Hamilton saw one option: Start his own.  And he did, and it survives today.  And it is firmly in our political corner.

November 15, 2021       Permalink

AT SOME POINT, THIS HAD TO HAPPEN – OVERNIGHT:  The Russkies may well be in our faces again, and, strangely, Donald Trump is not colluding with them.  Aren't you shocked?  From Daily Mail: 

The U.S. said on Monday that it was investigating a 'debris-generating event in outer space' after astronauts on the International Space Station were forced to prepare for a possible evacuation.

It came amid unconfirmed reports that Russia had carried out an anti-satellite weapon (ASAT) test - rare show-of-force demonstrations criticized by the space community because of the risk they create for crews in low Earth orbit.

'US Space Command is aware of a debris-generating event in outer space. We are actively working to characterize the debris field and will continue to ensure all space-faring nations have the information necessary to maneuver satellites if impacted,' the agency said.

'We are also in the process of working with... the State Department and NASA, concerning these reports and will provide an update in the near future.'

DailyMail.com has reached out to NASA and Space Command with a request for comment on the incident.

Russian space agency Roscomos confirmed something had happened, but it downplayed the incident.

'The orbit of the object, which forced the crew today to move into spacecraft according to standard procedures, has moved away from the ISS orbit. The station is in the green zone,' the agency tweeted.

'Friends, everything is regular with us! We continue to work according to the program,' tweeted Anton Shkaplerov, the current commander of the outpost.

COMMENT:  Yeah, right.  Everything is regular.  And I wonder if the U.S. will officially disagree.  I fear we're seeing the start of "Covid 19 Origin – The Sequel."  Will anyone admit that the Russians did this as part of an anti-satellite test?  And that we got caught off guard? 

We are heavily dependent on satellites.  I can't imagine the Russians or the Chinese having a higher priority than to destroy our military satellites, our eyes and ears, our communications network, our instruments of navigation.  This must have our highest priority, but, as before World War II, I fear our attention is limited..

UPDATE AT 4:30 A.M. ET:  The US is now officially blaming Russia for the space recklessness.  Our link to the Daily Mail story contains the update.  This is a good first step.

November 15, 2021       Permalink 

NOVEMBER 14,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT: 

THE SKY IS FALLING, THE SKY IS FALLING – OVERNIGHT:  In a way, this is child abuse.  From Newsbusters:    As the COP26 climate summit raged in Glasgow, Scotland, the past couple of weeks, PBS churned out plenty of taxpayer-funded doom and gloom predictions, and, at worst, even seemed to defend the irrational "climate anxiety" felt by some school children who have sadly been indoctrinated by the liberal media on the issue.  On Wednesday's show PBS NewsHour, anchor Judy Woodruff relayed results from a poll commissioned by PBS NewsHour and Generation Lab, finding that substantial percentages of children believe climate change will effect important life issues for them later on like having children or where they live.   The show then devoted eight minutes to the issue by showing a pre-recorded piece by correspondent William Brangham. One high school student featured in the piece, Sofia Palau, recalled suffering from panic attacks, and having difficulty studying for the ACT because she kept thinking of the "impending doom."  What a terrible thing to do to children, and all based on theories and predictions that have been shown to be wobbly.  And we call ourselves advanced.

November 14, 2021       Permalink

THE CRUMBLING CONTINUES, DAY BY DAY – OVERNIGHT:  The Biden administration is in freefall.  It isn't just one poll or two.   Similar numbers are showing up everywhere.  The public shift is serious, fueled by anger, and possibly permanent.  From Daily Caller: 

“As things stand, if the midterm elections were today, 51 percent of registered voters say they’d support the Republican candidate in their congressional district, 41 percent the Democrat,” reads a press release from Langer Research, which conducted the poll for ABC News/Washington Post.

“That’s the biggest lead for the Republicans in 110 ABC/Post polls to ask this question since November 1981. Indeed, it’s only the second time the GOP has held a statistically significant advantage (the other was +7 points in January 2002) and the ninth time it’s held any numerical edge at all.”

Independents, who are often considered the swing vote in elections, would support the GOP candidate by a 50-32 percent margin. This is notable considering they voted +12 points for the Democratic Party in the 2018 elections, which were the most recent midterm election.

New WaPo poll: Biden approval sinks to 38% (new low), GOP leads in generic ballot by TEN points (51 to 41) among registered voters. https://t.co/teNHqtoTsR

The same poll also shows widespread economic anxiety among Americans. With inflation running at a 30-year high, 70% of Americans say the U.S. economy is in bad shape. That is up from 58% earlier this spring.

Biden’s approval rating has also fallen in the poll to 41%, which matches the generic congressional ballot voter preferences for Democrats. This is down from his approval rating in a recent CNN poll which showed his overall approval rating at 48%.

Biden’s rating is at an all time low for his career among nearly all demographic groups. Independent voters give Biden just 35% approval. However, 63% support the recently passed infrastructure bill and 58% favor the Build Back Better bill.

And there's this, from hotair.com:  

A new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll has some bad news for Joe Biden. In a hypothetical matchup between Trump and Biden in 2024, Trump is favored by eleven points. The real question should be whether or not either of the two men is going to run in 2024.

Both Joe Biden and Donald Trump have indicated they will run in 2024. Biden even told reporters in March during his first news conference that he plans to run for reelection but that was just two months into his term and what was he going to say at that point? Biden said, “The answer is yes, my plan is to run for reelection. That’s my expectation.” Since then his approval with voters has plummeted. There is a lot of buyer’s remorse out there.

Trump remains popular with Republican voters. Trump won Iowa in 2020 by eight percentage points over Biden – 53% to 45%. Trump has not left the stage since Biden was sworn in as president and he sure sounds as though he is seriously considering another run. Biden’s approval with Iowa voters is at its lowest ebb since taking office.

COMMENT:  We stress once again that these polls are snapshots in time.  Biden's numbers can change if he starts getting things right, although he has not yet achieved that art.  And both economic and foreign conditions can change for the better.  Luck is also involved.

Republicans are on a good path to an impressive victory in the 2022 midterms.  Those elections, though, are a year off.  Take the current numbers simply as a guide to trends.  We have the right to smile.

November 14,  2021     Permalink