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March 2023

EVs Are The Yugo Of The 21st Century

https://issuesinsights.com/2023/03/28/evs-are-the-yugo-of-the-21st-century/

Way back in the mid-1980s, communist Yugoslavia exported the Yugo, a compact car that sold for around $4,000. It was so poorly made that bumping into a pole at 5 mph could total it.

Fast forward to today, and a new class of cars has a similar problem. A minor accident can cause a total loss, even if the car’s been driven only a few miles. The only difference is that these cars aren’t cheap imports from some godforsaken socialist state. These are state-of-art electric vehicles that come with an average sticker price of $55,000.

Why are insurance companies totaling low-mileage EVs that have been in a fender bender? For the same reason you could total a new Yugo when backing out of a parking spot. The cost of repair is exorbitant.

As Reuters reported recently, “For many electric vehicles, there is no way to repair or assess even slightly damaged battery packs after accidents,” which means the only viable option is to replace the battery, which represents about half the cost of the car.

A replacement battery for a $44,000 Tesla Model 3 can cost up to $20,000.

One expert told Reuters that Tesla’s Model Y has “zero repairability” because its battery is built into the structure of the car.

As a result, drivers are finding that even a minor accident ends up with their shiny new EVs being hauled away to the junkyard.

Reuters’ search of EV salvage sales in the U.S. and Europe found a large number of low-mileage EVs made by Tesla, Nissan, Hyundai, and others being scrapped.

Why the Nashville Christian School Shooting Is About to Disappear from the News Cycle Matt Vespa

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2023/03/27/of-course-you-all-know-why-the-liberal-media-is-going-to-smother-the-nashville-shooting-n2621182

Julio has been covering the tragedy in Nashville, Tennessee. Six people, three children, and three adult staffers, were shot and killed at the Covenant School, a private Christian learning institution. Anti-gun activists hijacked a press conference on the incident earlier today. The Biden White House will probably push the usual talking points about banning so-called assault weapons, which will be echoed by their allies on the gun control issue. Unlike the shootings at Michigan State University and East High School in Denver, Colorado, this perpetrator had a handgun and two AR-15-style rifles. You can already hear the anti-gun Left licking their lips—now they had a chance to score some points. Except they can’t, Audrey Hale was identified as the shooter, and this person was transgender. Hale was shot and killed by police during the assault. 

As Julio wrote, there is a manifesto and maps of potential targets. This shooter planned this attack, and given the setting; a hate crime cannot be ruled out. The lingering question will remain unresolved since a transgender mass shooter is one story the media will avoid like the plague. Authorities said they have a working theory on a motive but are unwilling to disclose it at this time (via NBC News): 

The shooter, Audrey Hale, 28, of Nashville, identified as transgender and had no previous criminal record, according to the chief. 

Xi and Vlad, a Wake-Up Call for America and the West The new Axis of Evil. by D.W. Wilber

https://www.frontpagemag.com/xi-and-vlad-a-wake-up-call-for-america-and-the-west/

The recent visit of the Communist Chinese leader Xi Jinping to Moscow for meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin was partly intended to be a big poke in the eye to America, and a message to the West in general that China is on the move and fully intends to replace the United States as the world’s only superpower. A quote that is often attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte might seem appropriate at this point in time, “Let China Sleep, for when she wakes, she will shake the world.” China is definitely awake.

The Moscow meetings were full of pomp and ceremony, but truthfully, Russian President Vladimir Putin is really just along for the ride, a junior partner and temporary ally of China during this period of transition as a result of China asserting itself internationally. China really doesn’t need Russia, but Russia and Vladimir Putin definitely needs China.

Vladimir Putin’s ill-conceived invasion of Ukraine, with the Ukrainians proving to be a tenacious enemy exacting huge costs in Russian lives and materiel, has made Putin’s grip on power in Russia somewhat tenuous. Xi Jinping knows this. Putin needs China’s support to keep him from possibly having an unanticipated ‘accident’ or ‘health emergency,’ as has sometimes been the case when a Russian leader falls out of favor with the ruling elite in the Kremlin.

Xi Jinping has provided that support, for the moment. But Xi Jinping has no intention of allowing Putin to drag China down with Russia should the Ukrainian invasion continue to go badly for Putin. China will cut Putin loose in a heartbeat if this new relationship threatens China’s long term goals in any way. China has embarked on what can only be described as something akin to a ‘marriage of convenience’ with Russia, and will only maintain that relationship as long as it benefits China’s agenda.

The diplomatic full court press that China’s been pursuing in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and in our own hemisphere is a direct result of the weakness of the Biden Administration. Joe Biden simply isn’t physically or mentally capable of meeting the rigors of the job as president. He can barely make it to Delaware every weekend to rest and recover from his demanding 20-hour work week.

Only 38% in U.S. Say Patriotism is Important This is what national suicide looks like. by Daniel Greenfield

https://www.frontpagemag.com/only-38-in-u-s-say-patriotism-is-important/

“I have felt broken after elections, but I’ve never lost hope. Seeing numbers like these however is much more devastating. Bad governments can be removed, but what happens when a people loses its soul?”

Wrecking a nation and a society has consequences. Tell people enough that America was built on slavery, that it’s a racist society, or that it’s been governed by a secret elite that starts all the wars, and patriotism goes out the window. Ridicule religion, destroy moral values and you leave behind little more than political religions of cults of personality and conspiracy theories. Announce that the planet will soon die and that carpe diem is the only sensible thing anyway, and how many will choose children over the latest iPhone.

I don’t think we need to worry about WWIII. That’s so 80s. We need to worry that we’re committing cultural suicide.

Some 38% of respondents said patriotism was very important to them, and 39% said religion was very important. That was down sharply from when the Journal first asked the question in 1998, when 70% deemed patriotism to be very important, and 62% said so of religion.

Having children is down to 30%.

But don’t worry, we’re discovering what really matters in life.

The only priority the Journal tested that has grown in importance in the past quarter-century is money, which was cited as very important by 43% in the new survey, up from 31% in 1998.

You can’t get the latest Apple mixed reality headset so you can live in the metaverse without money. Until guaranteed minimum income and full luxury communism arrive.

National Security Threat: Another Latin American Country Chooses China by Judith Bergman

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19534/china-latin-america-security-threat

The Biden administration seems adept at launching grand schemes that make it look as if it is doing something about countering China in Latin America, but American leadership seems to be entirely absent.

This absence of US leadership in Latin America has become seriously critical: senior military commanders in the US warn that China’s actions in Latin America pose increasing risks to US national security.

“What concerns me as a Combatant Commander is the myriad of ways in which the PRC is spreading its malign influence, wielding its economic might, and conducting gray zone activities to expand its military and political access and influence…” — General Laura Jane Richardson, Commander, US Southern Command, to the House Armed Services Committee, March 8, 2023.

“The PRC is investing in critical infrastructure, including deep-water ports, cyber, and space facilities which can have a potential dual use for malign commercial and military activities. In any potential global conflict, the PRC could leverage strategic regional ports to restrict U.S. naval and commercial ship access. This is a strategic risk that we can’t accept or ignore.” — General Laura Jane Richardson, March 8, 2023.

Unfortunately, ignoring those risks seems to be exactly what the Biden administration is doing.

What is the point of such [US] programs, however, if they are unable to stop Latin American countries from being forced to turn to China for leadership, or at least having the US try to counter yet another future Chinese takeover in Latin America?

Honduras recently cut ties with Taiwan and established diplomatic ties with China.

Israel’s Judicial System Is The Dream Of The American Left By: David Harsanyi

https://thefederalist.com/2023/03/27/israels-judicial-system-is-the-dream-of-the-american-left/

No constitution. No limiting principles of governance. Entrenched leftist judges who get to appoint their own successors in perpetuity. Courts that offer arbitrary, expedient, constantly evolving, sometimes contradictory rulings to block laws passed by duly-elected, center-right governments. An attorney general empowered to bar elected leaders from participating in national debates. Sounds like a progressive paradise.

This is the reality of the Israeli high court, which is likely imbued with more power than any other in the Western world. It is not always wrong. It is not always nakedly partisan. But it has power to act as a judicial dictatorship, and often does.

And after Benjamin Netanyahu’s government proposed reforming this insane system — procedural reforms that would be in place no matter who was in power — the left acted as the contemporary left always acts when it doesn’t get its way. It got hysterical. The mass protests that erupted were hardly “spontaneous,” though, contrary to many reports in the establishment media. Most of the demonstrations were organized by Israel’s biggest unions and egged on by foreigners. Because a less powerful judiciary threatens the center-left’s power.

A country without a constitution or bill of rights, and only a single house of parliament — one that, by the nature of the system, is controlled by the prime minister (or vice versa) — will struggle to maintain any genuine checks and balances. The direct democratic character of Israel’s government, one that American progressives would like to emulate, gives both too much power to the prime minister and too much power to fringe parties the prime minister needs to keep in line to rule. It’s a dysfunctional mess.

But the nation’s judicial system is even worse. Israel’s political system was created by leftists who envisioned a one-party state. From its inception, the nation’s socialists suppressed — sometimes violently — political opposition. And in the 1950s, a ruling Labor Party preempted the opposition from infiltrating the courts by empowering judges to veto appointees to the bench. This created a self-perpetuating, generationally cocooned judiciary that functions without any set of cohesive legal principles or oversight.

The USA is experiencing a crisis of faith — in itself By Vivek Ramaswamy

https://nypost.com/2023/03/27/the-usa-is-experiencing-a-crisis-of-faith-in-itself/

I’m the first millennial Republican to run for US president. If you ask most people my age what it means to be an American today, you get a blank stare in response. Faith, patriotism, family and hard work are disappearing. 

A recent Wall Street Journal survey reveals that young people in particular are responsible for driving this trend: 59% of Americans age 65 and older say that patriotism is “very important” to them, compared with only 23% of adults under age 30. The survey observed a similar gap with respect to interest in religion, hard work and having children. 

This is sad but unsurprising. Our nation’s higher-education institutions reliably sing their America-bashing chorus: Recently Stanford University deemed the term “American” to be “harmful language.” 

National identity 

Even more disturbingly, the “America is bad” ilk has slinked its way into our elementary schools under the auspices of equity and social justice. Students in classrooms across America today are taught to apologize for our country’s history rather than to be proud of it. Critical race theory and gender theory pervades K-12 education, where children are taught to identify themselves as members of an “oppressor” or “oppressed” category based on their skin color and sexual preferences. 

Public schools endlessly celebrate “diversity” as our strength without reminding students of what binds us together as one people. 

Another Train Carrying Hazardous Materials Derails. What’s Going On? By Matt Margolis

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/matt-margolis/2023/03/27/another-train-carrying-hazardous-materials-derails-whats-going-on-n1681823

Move over “died suddenly,” because “train carrying hazardous materials derails” is quickly becoming the most common story to pop up in our news feeds.

As per local reports, a train belonging to Canadian Pacific, consisting of 70 cars transporting hazardous materials, derailed late Sunday night in North Dakota, approximately one mile southeast of Wyndmere in Richland County at around 11:15 p.m.  According to the report, 31 of the 70 cars derailed, and some were found to be leaking petroleum used in the production of asphalt. No injuries have been reported.

Officials said crews will wait for the cold weather to solidify the leaked material, which is expected to transform into a gel.

Related: Three Train Derailments and a Developing Bio-Disaster — Where Are the Eco-Harpies?

As worries about railroad safety persist in the United States, the recent incident in North Dakota is the latest in a string of train derailments.

Ron DeSantis Notches Another Huge Win By Stephen Green

https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2023/03/27/florida-man-desantis-makes-universal-school-choice-a-reality-n1681850

The anti-progressive pathogen known as universal school choice spread to Florida today, as Gov. Ron DeSantis put his signature on the state’s House Bill 1.

DeSantis said at the signing that the new law represents “the largest expansion of education choice not just in the history of this state, but in the history of these United States.” Florida is generally ranked well in education, “despite” — please notice the scare quotes — spending less per pupil than almost any other state.

The new law ensures “eligibility of the state’s Florida Tax Credit Scholarship and Family Empowerment Scholarship to any resident of Florida” eligible for K-12 public education, according to Click Orlando.

“At the end of the day,” DeSantis also said, “we fundamentally believe that the money should follow the student and it should be directed based on what the parent thinks is the most appropriate education program for their child.”

Under the law, new Education Savings Accounts will give families up to $8,000 to spend on education outside the public school system. The amount is based on need, with families of four earning under $51,000 (or 186% of the poverty line) getting dibs on voucher dollars. The second tier of funds goes to families whose incomes do not exceed 400% of the poverty line.

DeSantis was on a roll against critics of universal school choice: “There were some that said, ‘Oh, you know, parents… don’t know what they’re doing. They shouldn’t be involved.’ You hear these crazy arguments, but I can tell you if you talk to most teachers, if a parent is engaged in the student’s education, the student is going to do much better.”

The Scourge of Jewish Self-Division, or The ‘Court Jews’ Are Busy at Work By David Solway

https://pjmedia.com/columns/david-solway-2/2023/03/27/the-scourge-of-jewish-self-division-or-the-court-jews-are-busy-at-work-n1681976

I have seen these people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people. (Exodus 32:9).

EXCERPTS

The Jewish epic across the wilderness of history may be described as divide and be conquered. Surah 59:14 of the Koran tells us something very true about us Jews: “There is much hostility between them: their hearts are divided…” It seems that the wise counsel of Judaism’s great sage Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah has no resonance for the backsliders: “All of Israel and those who are joined to it are to each other like brothers. If brother shows no compassion to brother, who will show compassion to him?”

Who, indeed? We see the sorry spectacle of division acting itself out today in the violent civil protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to reform a hard-core, self-appointing, Leftist Supreme Court, which regularly thwarts the will of legitimate right-wing governments. It was on this platform that Netanyahu was elected by a massive majority of the vote. But the Left is good at civil disruption. There have been resignations and firings of dissident members of the government and raging animosity against the prime minister for his perceived temerity in trying to overhaul the judicial system and redress a long-festering political sore. The Left is having none of it. Netanyahu’s critics argue that the plan is pushing Israel down a path to autocracy, a path they themselves appear to be treading.

Similarly, Melanie Phillips remarks that Netanyahu is reacting against the anti-democratic rule of an interventionist judicial activism, a system in which “judges have substituted politics and ideology for law,” superseding duly elected parliaments. Seen from a larger perspective, the demonstrations and irruptions express the principle of “liberal universalism that…would prefer rule by judges” who promulgate universal laws determined by the globalist Left over rule by an elected government administering the laws of the nation. Military and security professional Ben Kerido aptly comments in The Western Standard that “Israeli protests against Netanyahu resemble the American radical Left.” What we are observing, in my estimation, is another manifestation of the Court Jews at work.

This history of self-estrangement, political strife, and cultural rupture has been played out from the biblical era through the centuries of religious factionalism and reciprocal ex-communication culminating in our own epoch. The legacy of the celebrated Jewish philosopher Martin Buber and the equally acclaimed Jewish political writer Hannah Arendt, who could never forget their German patrimony and were corrosively suspicious of the Zionist project, has been broadly and unambiguously noxious. In the present moment we observe their offspring, that is, left-wing “peace activists,” liberal rabbis, “post-Zionist” intellectuals, power nabobs, social ingratiators — in other words, Court Jews — who strive to erode the Jewish character of the state of Israel and so deprive it of its legitimacy. The Jewish Left, as it dances around the golden calf of a utopian project, represents perhaps the gravest danger to the survival of the country.

Thus, its adherents pursue their fugitive merit, ignoring the rain clouds until they are drenched and catch pneumonia, as the 19th-century Jewish philosopher Max Nordau put it.

These are the “degraded” Jews whom the great Jewish patriot Vladimir Jabotinsky denounced. They are reminiscent of the spies that Moses sent out to reconnoiter enemy territory, ten of whom on returning compared themselves to frail grasshoppers before the fearsome Anakim and recoiled from their destiny (Numbers 13: 33). They do not understand, in the words of Nurit Greenger, that “Israel is the last station in the Jews’ Via Dolorosa” and that “beyond this station is the Jews’ final crucifixion,” nor do they realize how profoundly they themselves are at risk. They have forgotten that the Jewish sense of security is always a false sense of security, that over the past 2,000 years, as Melvin Konner points out in Unsettled: An Anthropology of the Jews, Jews have been expelled from 94 countries. They do not think to ask themselves why the future should be any different.