ELECTIONS, NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

Republicans Must Make a Laser-Focused, Issues-Based Case to the People If Republicans can successfully frame the 2024 election as boiling down to the actual issues—the economy, inflation, immigration, and crime—then they stand a strong chance of prevailing. By Josh Hammer

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://amgreatness.com/2024/08/16/republicans-must-make-a-laser-focused-issues-based-case-to-the-people/

One of my favorite bits of ancient wisdom, which I have quoted many times over the years, is the Chinese military theorist Sun Tzu’s adage that a battle is won before it is fought because it is won by choosing the terrain on which it is fought. Accordingly, as I noted in a column a few months ago: “If former President Donald Trump and other Republicans on the ballot this fall want to win, they must choose the proper terrain.”

He who controls the narrative and framing necessarily controls the result. Every good trial lawyer knows this. And so should every good politician.

Although recent days have been more focused and suggest a possible turning of the tide, the electoral terrain for Republicans has generally been rather shaky ever since the bloodless Kamala Harris coup of Joe Biden a few weeks ago. Asking whether Harris—the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants—actually counts as “Black” for U.S. demographic purposes is fair substantive game, but it is certainly not fertile swing voter terrain. Even less compelling, and certainly less propitious, is incontinent friendly fire directed at the popular governor of a crucial swing state, Georgia.

Early voting begins in Pennsylvania, arguably this election’s single most decisive battleground state, on Sept. 16. That is just around the corner. Can Republicans pull it together in time and successfully define the electoral terrain?

Republicans are not entirely themselves to blame for the current state of the race, which has seen the GOP squander much of its momentum from the former president’s heroic survival of an assassination attempt and the party’s successful nominating convention. The corporate media has aided Democrats every step of the way. After pretending to be real journalists for a few weeks and holding Biden accountable for his palpable senility, the Washington press corps immediately returned to regime-apologist form after party elites succeeded in their coup. Thus, the present spectacle of Harris not answering a single real question from the press for nearly four weeks. Funny how quickly the media went from probing to outright laconic.

NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

Under a Harris Presidency A Harris administration would likely implement a Middle East policy that would be openly hostile to Israel and even more willing to appease Iran than the Biden administration. By Fred Fleitz

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://amgreatness.com/2024/08/16/ominous-signs-of-what-us-middle-east-policy-might-be-under-a-harris-presidency/

During his recent discussion with Elon Musk on X, Donald Trump said Kamala Harris would be even worse for Israel and the Jewish community than Joe Biden. Although there are many unknowns about what Kamala Harris’s positions would be as president on Middle East security if she wins the 2024 presidential election, several disturbing signs support President Trump’s belief.

Harris’s foreign policy record has been roundly criticized. She was ridiculed in 2022 for a pollyannish explanation of the Ukraine War when she said, “So, Ukraine is a country in Europe. It exists next to another country called Russia. Russia is a bigger country. Russia is a powerful country. Russia decided to invade a smaller country called Ukraine. So, basically, that’s wrong.”

Harris was strongly condemned in Ukraine and the U.S. for laughing and appearing clueless during a 2022 press conference in Poland when a reporter asked her a question about Ukrainian refugees. This response led Senator Marsha Blackburn to tweet, “It seems the only thing Kamala Harris knows how to do is laugh off her responsibilities.”

Harris praised Biden for an “extraordinary amount of courage” concerning his disastrous decision to abruptly withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan in 2021. She has argued that increasing nuclear deterrence is “dangerous” and called for reducing the defense budget and redirecting military funding to domestic programs. In dealing with Russia, China, Iran, and Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Harris usually favored appeasement over tough policies and American strength.

These and other indications of Harris’s foreign policy incompetence raise questions as to whether she can handle the complex security issues America faces in the Middle East.

There are already two indicators of this.

The first are pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel statements by Harris during her career driven by the thinking of the progressive left. She has consistently portrayed the Palestinians as victims, voted against legislation supporting Israel’s security, and voted in support of the anti-Semitic BDS movement.

EDUCATION Comments turned off

Joshua T. Katz Going Off the “Gold Standard” The American Association of University Professors, long relied on to champion academic freedom, can no longer be trusted to do so.

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://www.city-journal.org/article/american-association-of-university-professors-academic-boycotts

As students, professors, and administrators get ready to return to campus for what events both in the United States and abroad suggest will be another tumultuous year, the American Association of University Professors has decided to add fuel to the fire by announcing that it no longer categorically opposes academic boycotts. The decision by the once-august and respected organization is not surprising. After all, the AAUP is now led by a professor of journalism and media studies who a week ago used his official platform to call J. D. Vance “a fascist” and to claim that America’s colleges and universities are not in fact “ideological indoctrination centers.”

The AAUP was founded in 1915, in large part to “define fundamental professional values and standards for higher education.” In December of that year, in the first volume of its Bulletin, the AAUP promulgated a “Declaration of Principles on Academic Freedom and Academic Tenure,” which Keith E. Whittington in his outstanding new book You Can’t Teach That!: The Battle over University Classrooms describes as “provid[ing] the philosophical basis for a more robust understanding of academic freedom in the United States.” Twenty-five years later, the AAUP issued what remains to this day—after a few “interpretive” footnotes added in 1970—the most influential brief document on the subject: the “1940 Statement of Principles on Academic Freedom and Tenure,” which, to quote Whittington, “stripped away the philosophical discussion that dominated the 1915 Declaration and honed in on a small number of key commitments that universities should make to their faculties.”

In late April 2005, the British Association of University Teachers voted to boycott two institutions of higher education in Israel, Bar-Ilan and Haifa Universities, a move that would bar all Israeli scholars who did not denounce “their state’s colonial and racist policies” from participating in conferences or engaging in joint research with British colleagues. Scholars around the world were outraged—even Jon Wiener, writing in The Nation, called it “a mistake”—and within just days, the AAUP’s “Committee A,” charged with watching out for academic freedom and tenure, released a strong statement, “The AAUP Opposes Academic Boycotts,” that warned of the “damage [to] academic freedom.” By the end of May, the AUT had reversed its position, and the following year, the AAUP published a piece titled “On Academic Boycotts” that states clearly, “In view of the Association’s long-standing commitment to the free exchange of ideas, we oppose academic boycotts” and “On the same grounds, we recommend that other academic organizations oppose academic boycotts.” The lead author of the piece was Joan Wallach Scott.

ELECTIONS, NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

The Lies of Tim Walz Is he guilty of “stolen valor”? by Scott Hogenson

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://www.frontpagemag.com/the-lies-of-tim-walz/

The flap over military service involving Republican J.D. Vance and Democrat Tim Walz marks the biggest controversy of its kind in 20 years. Two decades ago, there was intense scrutiny of John Kerry’s service in the Navy’s swift boat fleet during the Vietnam War, an issue that arose in his 2004 presidential bid. I remember it well after working on President George W. Bush’s reelection campaign that year.

Questions and accusations swirled around Kerry’s Purple Hearts and his Bronze and Silver Star medals. Much of the attention focused on whether Kerry actually deserved his decorations. The circumstances involving Kerry’s three Purple Hearts, awarded to those wounded in action against the enemy, did not result in him ever being taken off duty for medical treatment. His wounds were minor and superficial, but they were wounds nonetheless.

Bronze Stars were commonly awarded to officers in Vietnam; a highly decorated Army colonel once told me that any officer who came home alive got one. As for Kerry’s Silver Star, the third highest military award, some argued his actions did not meet the standard of gallantry required for receiving that medal.

The Swift Boat controversy of 20 years ago hurt Kerry politically, but there’s a big difference between his situation and that of Tim Walz. John Kerry received those medals, and the citations for them are of record; he did not lie to voters. Walz did.

Walz previously claimed to have retired from the Army National Guard as a command sergeant major, designated by the rank of E-9, which is false. He never completed the rigorous requirements to deserve that rank and retired as a master sergeant, an E-8. He simply lied about his rank many times and over many years.

ELECTIONS Comments turned off

Harris can’t rely on identity politics this election, as wokery becomes a luxury belief By Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://nypost.com/2024/08/13/opinion/identity-politics-wont-save-kamala-harris-in-this-election/

When did you last test yourself for COVID-19?

There was a time when plans were cancelled at the first sign of a sniffle.

Four years later, the strange spell of COVID has lost its potency: The fever has broken.

Life continues as it did pre-pandemonium, but now with the lingering memory of how the pursuit of blind emotion — fear, in this case — clouds our judgment and compels obedience.

Identity politics is a different type of virus, one that was seeded by the far left to win the 2020 election.

Tailored to satiate fears during a period of social unrest, “progressives” convinced us that all society’s problems could be solved by bowing to the demands of social justice warriors.

Their carefully curated media image — as a balm to heal Trump fatigue with the Democratic Party’s compassion — facilitated their victory.

But with victory came contempt for at least half the electorate.

President Biden has repeatedly used the phrase “MAGA Republicans” to stereotype Trump supporters as dangerous authoritarians.

Democrats’ political consultants seem to have settled on this strategy to conceal their divisive and destructive policies of the last four years.

Millions of dollars feed this machinery — ads, focus groups, curated polls and an army of people knocking on doors — to create the illusion that with Kamala Harris, the party has great momentum.

WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

Olympic Fool’s Gold Follies Algerian boxer Imane Khelif files “criminal complaint” against J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk. by Lloyd Billingsley

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://www.frontpagemag.com/olympic-fools-gold-follies/

J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk have been named in a criminal complaint to French authorities over “acts of aggravated cyber harassment” against Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, NBC reports. The complaint centers on “bullying” over Khelif’s gender, which allegedly “greatly affected” the boxer, who won a Gold Medal in the women’s 66 kg class. The bullying refers to online comments from Rowling, that men beating up women had become an Olympic sport; Riley Gaines stating that men don’t belong in women’s sports, and Donald Trump saying that he would keep men out of women’s sports.

Nabil Boudi, Khelif’s attorney, told reporters that the lawsuit “could target personalities overseas,” and that prosecutors dealing with “online hate speech has the possibility to make requests for mutual legal assistance with other countries.” As Boudi helpfully clarifies, this is all about punishing free speech.

Female impersonator bullies like Khelif seek to force compliance with their reality dysphoria by creating offenses such as “misgendering” for simple recognition of biological truth. If someone criticizes gender fakery, the parties in question are not the target of “hate speech” and not “oppressed” in any fashion. The gender benders are the bullies and oppressors, and another dynamic is in play.

Men who beat up women are gutless cowards, what previous generations called “chickenshit” without the slightest embarrassment, and they also qualify as underachievers. For example, the former William Thomas was mediocre at best on the men’s swim team at Penn. Against women, with his rudder still intact, he does much better, and the NCAA sanctions the fraud. When swimmer Riley Gaines attempts to make her case, she becomes the target of outright assault.

It would be interesting to see how Imane Khelif would perform against men’s Olympic lightweight champ Erislandy Alvarez of Cuba, or the USA’s Omari Jones, who won the bronze, the only boxing medal for the USA in the Paris games. If anyone thought the American would smack the fertilizer out of the Algerian it would be hard to blame them. So put it to the test, or take it to another level.  Khelif failed a chromosome test with the International Boxing Association, so he might want to take on the professionals.

ENVIRONMENT AND JUNK SCIENCE Comments turned off

The Climate Of Lies Keeps Getting Hotter

Posted By on August 16th, 2024

https://issuesinsights.com/2024/08/16/the-climate-of-lies-keeps-getting-hotter/

The New York Times recently published a long story warning that the planet’s climate tipping points are frighteningly near. The “great systems in the natural world,” the reporters say, “might be pushing toward collapse” due to man’s use of fossil fuel. Maybe so. Or the changes we’re seeing in the climate might be entirely natural.

But that won’t sell papers to a readership that suffers from a chronic and intellectually stunting case of confirmation bias.

The Times wants us to worry about the mass death of coral reefs, the abrupt thawing of permafrost, the collapse of Greenland ice, the breakup of West Antarctic ice, a sudden shift in the West African monsoon, loss of the Amazon rainforest and the shutdown of Atlantic currents.

And ​​when might disaster be visited on all these hot spots? Well, says the Times, it depends on a number of variables and in some cases the timeline is just “hard to predict.”

Or maybe impossible. But again, a story with that angle won’t stir up the true believers who beg to be stirred up. Only alarmist articles will do that.

We pick on the mighty New York Times here, but it’s the legacy media’s great pleasure to spread misleading information and conjecture about the climate. 

About the only truth we can know about the claims surrounding anthropogenic global warming is that it’s “political, not physical, science.”

ISRAEL Comments turned off

POSITIVE NEWS FROM ISRAEL FROM MICHAEL ORDMAN

Posted By on August 15th, 2024

 www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com 

 

This newsletter was misplaced by me and much has happened since it was posted by Michael Ordman. Israel’s citizens continue to receive blood curdling threats from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran, and biased, ignorant an outright anti-Semitic threats in the academies and media. Nonetheless, on a visit to the great scientific, technical and medical institutions reveals 24/7 research and development that brings hope and security to all citizens in every country. rsk

 

POSITIVE NEWS IN A WAR
 
Lifting our spirit. (TY Sam Kramer) Ziv Shilon lost an arm in Gaza in 2012, but he didn’t lose his spirit. Here, he performs hagbah (lifting the Torah scroll) in the Chabad of Savyon, Nothing stops these heroes – they are now a defining and meaningful part of the fabric of Israeli society. See also Ari Spitz, wounded in Feb 2024.
https://sparksofanation.com/sparks/ziv-shilon-lost-an-arm-but-he-didnt-lose-his-spirit-here-he-performs-hagbah-in-savyon-fortitude-and-faith-fueling-him-forward/  https://zivshilon.com/en/about/
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C9NaGEct2GG/  https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/388392
 
A modern day prophet & hero. Another article describing the actions of Rami Davidian (see here previously) who saved hundreds from the Hamas terrorists. The author writes, “Our people are Maccabees and prophets, warriors and angels. There have been many heroes, but Rami Davidian…must be remembered for generations.”
https://www.jns.org/a-modern-day-prophet-and-hero/
 
Defense innovations from startups. Once you skip the negative section of this article, there are several key initiatives and innovations that will help the IDF in future conflicts. The MAFAT program, Tel Aviv University problem-solving, Unit 81, MAMRAM’s tech commando unit, 
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-war-with-low-tech-foe-startups-could-prevent-costly-failings-so-why-dont-they/
 
Be’eri dairy makes cheese again. The dairy at Kibbutz Be’eri is producing its famous cheeses again, nine months after the devastating Oct 7 attack. Despite losing his business partner, Dagan Peleg bowed to pressure from Israelis craving for Be’eri cheese – especially those from the kibbutz evacuated to Dead Sea hotels.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/beeris-boutique-cheesemakers-carry-on-without-dror-ors-golden-hands/
https://beeridairy.co.il/
 
 
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
 
Patient “speaks” using the power of thought alone. A historical first. A 37-year-old male neurosurgical epilepsy patient at Tel Aviv’s Ichilov (Sourasky) Medical Center was implanted with depth electrodes. He silently controlled a computer-based vocalizer in a natural way to voluntarily produce 2 vowel sounds.
https://www.jns.org/tau-researchers-allow-patient-to-speak-with-thought-alone/
https://journals.lww.com/neurosurgery/abstract/9900/a_speech_neuroprosthesis_in_the_frontal_lobe_and.1250.aspx
 
Non-invasive glucose monitoring. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s HAGAR’s GWave is the world’s first non-invasive continuous glucose monitoring technology that uses radiofrequency (RF) waves to measure glucose levels in the blood. Its latest trial had 97% accuracy compared to blood tests (see here). See other Israeli monitors here.
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211123005227/en/HAGAR-GWave-Awarded-FDA-Breakthrough-Device-Designation  https://www.hagartech.com/
 
How good are your arteries? Israel’s AccuLine is developing CORA – an accurate, non-invasive, swift, and low-cost test for early detection of coronary artery disease and prevent heart attacks. It detects 2 novel bio-signals in combination with AI-powered signal processing and proprietary augmented waveform display.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/sjp00jnzdc   https://acculine-medical.com/
 
Replacing open-heart surgery. (TY Ron M) US giant Edwards Lifesciences’ acquisition of Israel’s Innovalve Bio Medical will enable its innovative catheterization system to replace the diseased mitral valves of millions of patients, avoiding open-heart surgery. The system was originally developed at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center.
https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/b1fsw8sua   https://www.innovalvemed.com/
 
The hub of the brain. (TY UWI) Researchers from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem have identified the brain’s claustrum as vital for controlling behaviour e.g., responsiveness and impulsivity. It also regulates sleep and the new knowledge can open up new pathways for treating ADHD, schizophrenia, OCD, and addictions.
https://tps.co.il/articles/israeli-findings-on-a-hidden-brain-hub-open-path-for-new-adhd-treatment/
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-48829-6
 
One-day retreat to prevent PTSD. (TY Yanky) Israeli NGO The Protective Partnership has started a free one-day retreat in Herzliya, called the Villa. Led by Dr Ronny Simons, it uses Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy to strengthen the brains of IDF soldiers to protect against suffering PTSD.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/intensive-one-day-retreat-program-aims-to-prevent-ptsd-among-idf-reservists/
https://the-villa.co.il/en/main/  https://the-villa.co.il/en/who-we-are/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_movement_desensitization_and_reprocessing
 
Cancer care for Anglo Israelis. (TY Yanky) Sharsheret Israel helps English-speaking women in Israel with breast cancer to navigate treatment and support. Based on the US model, Sharsheret Israel is piloting its services including psychosocial support, cancer treatment navigation, education, support groups and more.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-808079  https://sharsheret.org/israel/
 
Boosting health tech in the North. Israeli NGO Startup Nation Central is helping Tzafon Medical Center (Poriya hospital) near Tiberias become a regional leader in health tech innovation and entrepreneurship. It will also support the new Helmsley Rehabilitation Center at the hospital.
https://www.jns.org/startup-nation-central-partners-with-israeli-hospital-to-boost-health-tech-in-north/ 
 
Has your medicine expired? The expiry date printed on many medicine bottles is not relevant once you open it – you must record the date it was opened. Israel’s Innocap has a special cap with a simple dial that records the day and month of opening. It also connects to a smartphone which displays information about the medicine.
https://nocamels.com/2024/07/smart-cap-keeps-on-top-of-your-medications-crucial-expiration-date/
https://innocap.info/smart-cap-en/ 
 
Almost life-like. (TY Atid-EDI) The new J5 Digital Anatomy™ 3D Printer from Israel’s Stratasys enables the creation of biomechanically accurate, highly realistic anatomical models for medical purposes. These mimic bone structures, tissues, ligaments, & complex vascular structures, respond like organs, and much more.
https://www.stratasys.com/en/3d-printers/printer-catalog/polyjet/j5-digital-anatomy-printer/
https://www.stratasys.com/en/landing-pages/j5-digitalanatomy-3d-printer/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kx48txM5P6A
 
Sisters! Take care if you ask to see the “Sister” at the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya. Nurses Yamit and Inbal are identical twins. Their older sister Sima (another nurse) looks just like them. They grew up in a house with 10 children – nine girls and one boy. Their parents must have needed a lot of patience, or is it patients?
https://www.ynetnews.com/magazine/article/sjdljievr
 
 

WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

France: Political Chaos by Guy Millière

Posted By on August 15th, 2024

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20854/france-political-chaos

Rebellious France is not only a far-left party, it is also a party tinged with anti-Semitism and counts supporters of Islamism and terrorist groups such as Hamas in its ranks.

The left-wing coalition has clearly been gaining ground. Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the leader of Rebellious France, to emphasize that he accepts anti-Semitism and supports Hamas and Islamism, gave a speech about his party’s results while standing on stage next to an Islamist pro-Hamas activist, newly-elected Member of European Parliament Rima Hassan. Hassan wore a keffiyeh and displayed on her clothes a small Palestinian flag.

An unprecedented situation in France took shape: all the candidates from other parties were asked to withdraw from the election and support the candidate of another party better placed to defeat the National Rally candidate, even if the better-placed candidate belonged to a party that they totally rejected.

The French mainstream media contributed to the operation and fueled fear of “fascism”. They accepted the propaganda. Rappers, who are widely listened to in Islamic no-go zones, released a song that calls for the murder of Jordan Bardella, the president of the National Rally, the rape of party leader Marine Le Pen, and the elimination of “Zionist Jews”. The song was described by some journalists as a courageous “song of resistance” and was broadcast over the radio. One of the lines from the song goes: “From the Jordan to the Seine, Palestine will be free” – a call not just for the destruction of Israel, but for the submission of France to Sharia law and Islam.

The “left”, with 184 seats, became the largest group in the National Assembly; Rebellious France, its most powerful component. The party’s leaders present themselves as the spearhead of the “anti-fascist struggle”; claim that they must govern the country, and that to remove them would be to make “concessions to fascism”. They do not bother to hide their anti-Semitism and their support for Hamas and Islam.

France has become almost ungovernable. No political party has a majority. No party can form a government coalition without having to renounce the most essential part of its program.

The power acquired by Rebellious France means that a government which does not have its approval cannot claim to govern. In addition, no new parliamentary elections can be organized for a year.

Polls have shown for months that a majority of French people would like a firm fight against crime, a stop to illegal immigration, and an end to the Islamization of the country. All these points were on the program of the National Rally.

Every year, on average, 500,000 new immigrants, mainly from the Muslim world, settle in France. Hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants reside in the country. Few are expelled. Islamic no-go zones are growing.

On the evening of July 7, Rebellious France organized a large rally in Paris’s Place de la République. Palestinian flags were everywhere; French flags almost nowhere. Speakers presented hateful slogans against the National Rally, Israel, Jewish journalists, and the police. Demonstrators burned cars and trash cans, and destroyed stores.

NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

America is turning into the EU Democrats are steering the US towards European-style censorship, technocratic rule and economic decline.

Posted By on August 15th, 2024

https://www.spiked-online.com/2024/08/14/kotkin-america-becoming-like-the-eu/

Europe may be fading from global relevance, but its influence is expanding within the US Democratic Party. Today, the party’s core beliefs echo those espoused by the European Union and much of the British establishment – an embrace of censorship, a draconian approach to climate change, support for trans ideology, the championing of race-based politics and, increasingly, hostility towards Israel and Jews.

With the seamless elevation of Kamala Harris and her ‘white dude’ vice-president pick, Minnesota governor Tim Walz, the Democratic Party has also embraced the undemocratic methods of the European Commission. The party has turned into a tightly controlled, elite-driven cabal. All this, of course, is justified by Democrats as a way to ‘defend democracy’ against the Trumpian hordes.

Once a truly national presence, the Democratic Party is now almost totally dominated by older, wealthier regions, like the north-east and the West Coast. This parallels establishment politics in Europe, which takes its cues from London, Paris, Brussels and Berlin – places where, as French author Christophe Guilluy notes, there is a ‘hyper-concentration of elites’.

In the not-so-recent past, the Democrats were also a national and sociologically diverse party. It included Catholics, southerners, labour unions, black and Hispanic politicians and oddball entrepreneurs not aligned with the country-club GOP. It was, as humourist Will Rogers pointed out, famously inwardly conflicted. ‘I do not belong to any organised political party’, the Oklahoma native joked, ‘I’m a Democrat’.

Today, Rogers’s chaotic party has achieved a discipline of almost Stalinist proportions. Rather than allow a battle for the presidency, the party rallied around Harris, who has never won a presidential primary. With a speed that would have astounded George Orwell, the Democrats’ media minions took a candidate widely seen as lacklustre and elevated her to mythic status.