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June 2023

China in Cuba: Nuclear-Armed Communists on the Warpath by Gordon G. Chang

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19748/china-cuba-nuclear-missiles

While Americans think of nukes as defensive instruments to deter attacks, Chinese war planners view them as offensive weapons, to compel submission. In other words, China thinks it can prevent others from coming to the aid of, say, Taiwan, by threatening nuclear destruction of their homelands.

With all the additional silos in China, why would the People’s Liberation Army need missiles in Cuba? Think shorter flight times — meaning less warning time.

All this means that, thanks to Cuba, a war in Asia will be fought on, near, and over the American homeland — perhaps with nukes.

China, according to “fragmentary” U.S. intelligence reports, is about to establish a “joint military training facility” with Cuba on that island.

Chinese military personnel are already listening in on American communications from the Lourdes base near Havana and three other Cuban locations. Two of those locations have been known for some time: Bejucal and Santiago de Cuba. These facilities, it appears, have been in operation for all or most of this century.

“What is missing is the strategic aim of China’s economic influence, which, in my opinion, goes beyond simply having a strong trade relationship with Latin America,” Joseph Humire of the Center for a Secure Free Society told Gatestone. “At its core, the People’s Republic of China is focused on gaining geopolitical leverage over countries in Central and South America to be used in an eventual conflict with the United States.”

China, with that leverage, is obtaining permission to build in this hemisphere military installations that can be used to attack the American homeland or the U.S. military, should China launch its invasion of Taiwan, Japan, or some other target. China, for instance, is developing what looks like a naval base at the tip of Argentina, at strategic Tierra del Fuego.

The left’s control over the language of sexuality finally meets resistance By Thomas Lifson

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/06/the_lefts_control_over_the_language_of_sexuality_finally_meets_resistance.html

George Orwell taught us that control over the terms used to discuss consequential subjects is a key element of tyranny.  It’s a lesson that the left took to heart as a weapon, not as a caution against despotism.

No better example exists today than the language of sex, which the left has asserted control over, immensely assisted by its dominance of the major media organs.  Calling genital mutilation “gender-affirming care” is the most blatant example of bizarro-world terminology since calling abortion “reproductive health care” and its advocacy as “choice.”  Virtually the entire medical, academic, and journalistic establishments employ the term “gender-affirming care” now.  

But finally, there is a growing movement that has attracted at least one piece of critical support in fighting back.  It started yesterday with a grassroots tweet from a therapist named James Esses:

When his point was picked up and extended to policy at Twitter (at least according to its owner, Elon Musk), attention to the term exploded:

My understanding of the import of the term “cis-” is that it denies any status as normal to what has been normal since the dawn of human consciousness: people (and the animal kingdom) come in two varieties, male and female.[i] Thanks to modern science, we know that these two (and two only) varieties are determined by chromosomes, equally binary, XY and XX.

This exchange led to further tweets making the point that the origin of the terminology “cis-” is perversely connected with pedophilia.

Enduring Truths and Neglected Lessons: Kevin Donnelly

https://quadrant.org.au/opinion/education/2023/06/enduring-truths-and-neglected-lessons/

Much of the debate surrounding schools and education centres on falling standards, teacher quality, school funding and what constitutes the most worthwhile curriculum and effective pedagogy. While such matters are important, more significant is the question: what constitutes the purpose of education? Given the rise of AI and chatbots and the fear humans will soon be replaced by computers, the question is even more urgent.

Illustrated by the cultural Left’s long march and prevalence of woke ideology in the nation’s classrooms, one answer is to use education as an instrument to overthrow what is depicted as an inherently racist, sexist, heteronormative capitalist society and to bring about the socialist utopia.

Throughout their schooling, students are indoctrinated with the belief that gender and sexuality are fluid and limitless, that males are inherently violent and misogynist and that Western civilisation is oppressive and guilty of white supremacism. Add the fact the world is about to end because of the climate change, that the arrival of the First Fleet led to genocide and there is nothing beneficial or redeeming about Australia’s development as a nation, and it’s no wonder young people suffer such high rates of anxiety and depression.

When Julia Gillard was education minister, she described herself as the minister for productivity. The focus is a utilitarian one where the purpose of education is to strengthen the economy and to ensure the nation has a highly skilled, globally competitive workforce. Associated with using schools to increase productivity is ensuring students are prepared for the uncertain, ever-changing world of the 21st century.  Knowledge is secondary to teaching generic competencies and skills like creativity, working in teams, critical thinking and embracing diversity and difference.

Ensuring education, especially in primary schools, is child-centred represents yet another approach to defining the purpose of education.  Re-badged as “personalised learning” and “student agency”, the belief is that learning only comes alive when it embraces the world of the child.

While each of the above models are distinctive, what they hold in common is the failure to address the essential role education plays in enculturation.  If societies are to survive and prosper and if individuals are to find meaning and purpose, each succeeding generation needs to be initiated into the broader culture.

FEDS FIND & CLEAN UP $600 BILLION IN WASTE AND DUPLICATION — THANKS TO COBURN RULE

It’s a target rich environment for government waste, fraud, corruption and taxpayer abuse. 

Yet, today comes a breath of fresh air!

Thanks to our honorary chairman, the late U.S. Senator Dr. Tom Coburn, the federal government’s own internal watchdog must regularly search for duplications and inefficiencies in federal spending — and report them to Congress.

Back in 2010, when President Obama was negotiating yet another debt-ceiling deal, Coburn insisted that this simple reform be part of the agreement. 

Today, the Government Accountability Office reported that $46.8 billion of duplicative spending was saved during the past year. 

 Altogether, since 2010, the Coburn Rule has saved taxpayers a collective $600 BILLION!

As Senator Coburn himself said of these reports: “Turning this ready-made list of cuts into savings is one of the best ways Congress can regain the trust and confidence of the American people. No American – regardless of party or ideology – wants to see their tax dollars fund unnecessary duplication and bloat.” 

Our Next President Must Fix Our Military First Can we get the winning attitude back? by Kurt Schlichter

https://www.frontpagemag.com/our-next-president-must-fix-our-military-first/

The federal bureaucracy is a smoldering smorgasbord of corruption, incompetence, and pride flag-waving wokeness, and the big questions for the next Republican president are where to start fixing it and how. There are a few things that need to happen day one to begin imposing our iron discipline upon the out-of-control derp state – pardons for every persecuted victim of the two-tiered “justice” system, orders to comply with all GOP investigatory subpoenas immediately, and firing Chris Wray. But defeating the unofficial fourth branch of government requires focus and intensity. You cannot take it down overnight because it will fight back with support from the regime media. So, you need a quick and critical win.

That’s why the first thing you fix is the military. Getting a big win relatively quickly is substantively vital – we cannot be at the mercy of China, et al. – but beating the Pentagon’s perfumed princes also demonstrates that the bureaucracy can be beaten. Fixing the military checks both boxes.

People wonder how the military went from a glorious force for freedom to a disastrous parody of itself led by a be-medaled faculty lounge on a three-decade-losing streak. They should not wonder – the military is a hierarchical and centralized organization that reflects its commander’s intent. Obama and the people currently holding dust-puppet Biden’s strings treated our military the same way the chardonnay-soaked Munchausen mommies treated their boys and emasculated it. Trump, though a supporter of a strong military, was bedazzled by the badges, ribbons, and stars of the flag officers and did not disrupt the decline. We need a 180 degree turnaround. Soldiers do what commanders check, and right now, they are checking wokeness. That’s why the military is woke. And therefore broke.

But what if we had a commander-in-chief who checked combat readiness? Its hierarchical nature means that the military is the easiest and fastest federal institution to change back. But it will take the president devoting time and focus to the task; he can win a vast victory fast if he – the commander – demands it.

‘Pageboy: A Memoir’ by Elliot Page The former Ellen Page tells her trans tale. by Danusha V. Goska

https://www.frontpagemag.com/pageboy-a-memoir-by-elliot-page/

Back in February, 2019, an actress named Ellen Page appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Page had made a big splash in the 2007 film Juno. Page played a pregnant teen. Teen pregnancy among unmarried girls is usually a catastrophe for the mother, the child, and the wider community; see for example here, here, here, and here. Juno sold unmarried teen pregnancy as a warm and cozy laugh riot. Juno, the main character, is a sixteen-year-old who is more mature than the adults around her; she must be the adult in her interaction with Mark, a childlike adult man. Juno is Johnny Carson on Dexedrine: she makes with nonstop wisecracks and educates her elders. The worldly-wise child is a variation on the Noble Savage theme.

Juno was written by Diablo Cody, a stripper and phone sex worker. “I am here to make money,” Cody told the New York Times. “Everything is prostitution,” Cody told David Letterman.

A month before Page’s Late Show appearance, white supremacist Trump supporters had attacked beloved black, gay actor Jussie Smollett in downtown Chicago in the early hours of the morning on a polar vortex night of record low temperatures. They poured bleach on him, put a noose around his neck, and hurled racist and homophobic slurs. Page was on Colbert to add her nasal whine to the national cry of righteous outrage, inspired by what was obviously a race-mongering hoax.

Watching that YouTube clip, I noticed immediately how tiny Page was. She stands five feet one, and she appeared to weigh less than one hundred pounds. Her features are classically girlish: tiny nose, bee-stung lips, perfect teeth, clean jawline, large eyes, long, shiny hair. The only discordant note was a large forehead. Page looked 17 or 18, much younger than her 32 years. Page was clearly a favorite of men who like ’em barely legal.

Page didn’t appear to be wearing much makeup, and her baggy clothes were thrift-store casual. Page won the genetic lottery. She could roll out of bed, and be more attractive than many women after an hour at the salon. Thanks to those genes, she was an international star.

As soon as Page sat down, Colbert reached behind his desk and pulled out a large photo. This was Page and her wife, Emma Portner. Portner and Page look enough alike to be sisters; both even have a high forehead. The audience applauded wildly. The applause lasted almost as long as the marriage. Page and Portner were wife and wife between 2018 and 2021.

Colbert, an impresario of Woke, used Page to signal his own virtue.

Whistleblowers: Biden’s DOJ Stopped Prosecutors From Going After Hunter What the federal judge with the final say must do. by Joseph Klein

https://www.frontpagemag.com/whistleblowers-bidens-doj-stopped-prosecutors-from-going-after-hunter/

A gentle slap on the wrist. That is what President Biden’s son Hunter will likely face for lying about his drug use on a federal gun purchase form and for evading the payment of hundreds of thousands of dollars he owed in federal taxes.

After five years of a bogus investigation, Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss’ office announced on June 20th an incredibly lenient plea deal for offenses that have sent lesser mortals without a daddy in the Oval Office to prison. That is, unless the federal judge assigned to the case, U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika, sees through this miscarriage of justice and rejects the plea deal.

When asked about the plea deal for Hunter’s illegal acquisition of a gun and cheating on his taxes, President Biden said he was “very proud” of his son. Given the president’s zealous support for gun control and for going after well-heeled tax cheats, President Biden would have been better off saying nothing at all.

If Hunter Biden had taken full ownership of his crimes and agreed to serve some jail time in exchange for the prosecution’s agreement to accept his guilty plea, then maybe there would have been something to be proud of. But that is not what happened. Hunter is an unreformed grifter who has lived his adult life leveraging his father’s political power for personal advantage. The Biden Justice Department’s offer of a sweetheart deal to Hunter came about only because his father is in the White House.

Hunter took one for the entire Biden family syndicate by agreeing to plead guilty to narrow charges focused only on his own tax evasion and illegal gun acquisition. He avoided entangling his family members, including the “big guy,” in a web of far more serious charges like money laundering, bribery, and violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, despite strong evidence of such crimes. Perhaps that is why President Biden is so proud of his son.

UCLA’s ‘3 Wishes Program’ Captures The True Meaning Of Serving Patients Henry I. Miller

https://issuesinsights.com/2023/06/22/uclas-3-wishes-program-captures-the-true-meaning-of-serving-patients/

During the years of my medical career when I treated patients (always in hospitals), I was one of those rushed doctors who focused on efficiently formulating and implementing diagnostic and treatment plans, rather than on the patient’s emotional needs. That was certainly true of “end-of-life care,” treatment and support given to people who are near the end of life and have stopped treatment to cure or control their disease. The goal then becomes controlling pain and other symptoms so the patient can be as comfortable as possible and includes physical, emotional, social, and spiritual support for patients and their families.

To a young, enthusiastic doctor, a dying patient is often seen as a failure, so somebody or something has to fill the gap, and a project at UCLA Health in Los Angeles is a stunning, munificent example.

The “3 Wishes Program” is a palliative care initiative in which clinicians inquire about and implement final wishes for patients who are expected to die imminently. As its mission statement says, “By celebrating lives and dignifying the dying process, the goal of the program is to improve the end-of-life experience for all stakeholders, including the patient, the family, and the clinicians.” It recognizes that in their final hours, most people have fears, regrets, and maybe a last, often simple request. The program has fulfilled almost 5,000 wishes for more than 1,400 patients.

I became aware of it by following on Twitter Dr. Thanh H. Neville, associate professor and intensive-care unit physician at UCLA Health. Some of the 3 Wishes stories are very affecting reminders of how meaningful small kindnesses can be.

‘Russian Collusion: It Was Hillary Clinton All Along’

https://issuesinsights.com/2023/06/23/russian-collusion-it-was-hillary-clinton-all-along/

After seven years of false charges and investigations of Donald Trump, both the FBI and Hillary Clinton walk away unscathed.

It was clear from the beginning that charges of “collusion” between Donald Trump and Russia during the 2016 election were phony — a cheap, and illegal, political trick. But they did their damage. While Trump beat Hillary Clinton, there has since been a non-stop Democratic Party-led campaign to tar him as a “traitor” or worse.

And, as the recent testimony of Special Counsel John Durham to Congress shows, Clinton lay behind this scheme to defraud American voters and throw an election. So, today, despite powerful evidence of official wrongdoing, we’re back where we were some seven years ago.

By the way, you might notice the headline above has quotation marks. That’s because it was the exact headline we placed on an editorial way back in August 2018. We didn’t need to change it a bit.

We wrote then: “It’s beginning to look as if claims of monstrous collusion between Russian officials and U.S. political operatives were true. But it wasn’t Donald Trump who was guilty of Russian collusion. It was Hillary Clinton and U.S. intelligence officials who worked with Russians and others to entrap Trump.”

Adam Schiff censured by House for ‘false’ allegations on Trump-Russia collusion No Democrats voted with Republicans to punish Schiff

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/adam-schiff-censured-house-false-allegations-trump-russia-collusion

The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., for pushing claims that former President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia — a vote that made Schiff just the third member of the House to be censured since the turn of the century.

The resolution passed 213-209 in a vote — every Republican voted for it except for six who voted “present,” and every Democrat voted against it.

Immediately following the vote, Democrats gathered on the floor and chanted “Shame!” and “Disgrace!” as House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., tried to gavel the House in order for several minutes. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was heard calling McCarthy a “spiteful coward” and accusing him of “weak leadership.”

McCarthy then asked Schiff to present himself in the well of the House, and Democrats clapped and cheered as he approached. After being interrupted several times by Democrats, McCarthy said, “I have all night.”

Schiff then stood in well of the House as required by the resolution, and was hugged and cheered by dozens of Democrats who surrounded him. The measure also requires the House Committee on Ethics to investigate Schiff’s “falsehoods, misrepresentations, and abuses of sensitive information.”

It was the second time the House tried to pass a resolution censuring Schiff from Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla. A resolution from Luna failed on the House floor last week because it recommended a fine against Schiff of $16 million, which Democrats and 20 Republicans opposed.

With that language removed, the resolution was able to pass on a party-line vote, which Luna said was needed to fight back against Schiff’s “lies” about Trump.

“As chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Adam Schiff launched an all-out political campaign built on baseless distortions against a sitting U.S. president, at the expense of every single citizen in this country and the honor of the House of Representatives,” Luna said before the vote. “With access to sensitive information unavailable to most members of Congress and certainly not accessible to the American people, Schiff abused his privileges, claiming to know the truth while leaving Americans in the dark about his web of lies… lies so severe that they altered the course of the country forever.”