I know I should be talking about Trump or immigration or jihad, but fresh takes just aren’t occurring to me this morning. So instead, let’s just talk about newly minted Labour head Jeremy Corbyn’s freakshow of a shadow cabinet. (For those not conversant with UK political terms, the “shadow cabinet” is the cabinet of the opposition party (in this case Labour) which would (theoretically) take over if the Tories were to lose power over a no-confidence vote; since the Tories currently enjoy an absolute majority, it would take a pretty big political upheaval for this to happen before 2020.) Evidently it was quite difficult for Corbyn to even find Labour MPs willing to take positions in his shadow cabinet.
A few choice examples:
Kerry McCarthy, shadow secretary of agriculture, is a hardcore vegan, and I’m sure her absolute opposition to meat will really help Labour win back not only the British butcher industry, but also the working class white voters that used to be Labour’s largest block of support. She’s also a supporter of homeopathic medicine.
The new Shadow Chancellor (finance minister) is John McDonnell, who openly states his desire to overthrow capitalism, wants to nationalize banks, praised the IRA for it’s bomb-setting and killing activity, and has fantasized about traveling back in time to assassinate Margaret Thatcher.
Shadow defense secretary Maria Eagle’s biggest issues seem to be gay rights and opposition to mink farming, neither of which tend to weigh heavily in defense policy.
Diane Abbott, shadow secretary of state for International Development, once said that “blonde, blue-eyed Finnish girls” at London hospitals were unsuitable as nurses because they had “never met a black person before” and that “white people love playing ‘divide & rule.'”
This isn’t just a “let’s have a laugh at the expense of the far left freaks” post (fun though that may be). To a large extent, personnel is policy, and this shows how quickly extreme left-wing/Social Justice Warrior ideas can take root at the center of a major political party if they have enough adherents in the overclass. Right now, there’s no shortage of Democratic Party activist who would love to make veganism the official policy of the United States government, and as Obama appointees have shown, would not let little things like “laws” (or the lack thereof) stand in the way of implementing their extremist policies were they be placed in a position of power.
Just when you think you’ve already seen the most idiotic ideas in firearms “safety” gizmos, this comes along. It’s a mini clip-on airbag condom for police sidearms to reduce the muzzle velocity of their first shot to nonlethal velocity.
This is like trying to prevent automobile deaths by creating a cumbersome device that ensures the parking break is always on.
Evidently the super-genius developers of this gizmo failed to notice that police already have a wide range of non-lethal force at their disposal, including tasers, beanbag rounds and rubber bullets.
So: a stupid, unworkable solution to a non-existent problem (fatal police shootings have been declining, not rising) hyped for political reasons (they have to find some way to keep black Americans voting for Democrats) that won’t be purchased by police departments and wouldn’t be used by cops even if the department did.
I would say it’s a mystery why the people behind this think criminals would be deterred by a nonlethal shot when they’ve already failed to be deterred by a policeman aiming a semiautomatic weapon directly at them and yelling at them to freeze (because that’s just a natural prelude to wacky hi-jinks), but these are probably the same people who thought gun-free zones would work…
How hard lefty? He makes Bernie Sanders look like Bob Dole:
Nothing should detract from his record as an unreconstructed socialist peacenik. He is stridently anti-American and has declared himself a “friend” of Hamas and Hizbollah. Despite the growing belligerence of Russia, he is inclined to take the UK out of Nato and would scrap Britain’s independent nuclear deterrent. Of particular concern is his critical stance towards the EU. It is now far from certain that Labour will support continued UK membership of the bloc at the forthcoming referendum.
On domestic policy, he lacks any credibility. He would nationalise Britain’s railways and utilities and remove the private sector from public services. Despite his claim to green credentials, he has pledged in the past to reopen the UK’s coal mines. He toys with forcing the Bank of England to underwrite deficit financing for any purpose, regardless of the effect on inflation. Under Mr Corbyn, Labour will, in the words of one party MP, become a “1980s Trotskyist tribute act.”
Now the question becomes: Which party replaces Labour as the main opposition to the Tories in 2020, SNP or UKIP?
“Perry had struggled to rise in polls and failed to qualify for last month’s prime-time debate in Cleveland — a major setback. He appeared in the undercard debate, only to see Carly Fiorina, a former technology executive, have what many observers considered a breakout performance.”
While I like Perry better than at least 2/3rds of the GOP field (and even made the case for him back in 2012), he couldn’t overcome his gaffes enough to get voters to take a look at his record as Governor.
I bet Evan at Perry vs. World would like that prediction back…
It’s the 14th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, and thanks to the super-genius foreign policy ofthe Obama Administration, radical Islam is more powerful than ever before!
The Islamic State attacks the Kurds with mustard gas Hey Obama: Big, bright red line here! What are you going to do about that? Nothing, eh? Just going to keep up your just-for-show pretend-war against the Islamic State?
The thermocline of truth at the Pentagon: “More than 50 intelligence analysts working out of the U.S. military’s Central Command have formally complained that their reports on ISIS and al Qaeda’s branch in Syria were being inappropriately altered by senior officials.”
Mark Steyn: “Since I last appeared in Copenhagen, some three-quarters of those I shared the stage with that day have been shot at, firebombed or forced to retire from public life and go into hiding.”
“The policies of Jeremy Corbyn, the old-fashioned socialist on course to be elected leader of the U.K.’s Labour Party, are wrong not because they’re left-wing, but because they’re delusional.”
Liberal writer discovers America. “I spent the night at the Chateau Motel & Liquor Store, which is a brilliant business idea that absolutely needs to come east.” #Merica (Hat tip: Instapundit.)
Deputies are searching for a man that allegedly injured a 12-year-old girl at a Williamson County park over the weekend.
It happened Saturday, Sept. 5 at around 5:50 p.m. on the Rattan Creek Park Trail, west of Parmer Lane at Dallas Drive. Investigators say the girl was walking on the trail at a bridge near where two paths intersect when she was approached by an adult male from the south. The Sheriff’s Office says he made several comments regarding the child’s beauty, saying she appeared older than she was, and asked various questions about her and any companions.
The suspect grabbed the child by the arm, tight enough to cause minor injury. He let go when one of the child’s friends approached them, and walked away from the trail, heading north into the woods, investigators say.
The subject was described as a white male, approximately 6’0″, with a slim to medium build, short brown hair, and believed to be in his late 30s. He was last seen wearing a white tank top, blue jeans, and had a large tattoo (possibly Old English text) on his left shoulder, extending down to his chest. The suspect was described as having unusually long fingernails.
If this suspect is observed in the area, you are asked to call the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office Detective Jason Waldon at (512) 244-8631 or jwaldon@wilco.org or after hours (512) 864-8302.
Read More at: http://www.keyetv.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/Deputies-Searching-For-Man-That-Injured-Child-At-WilCo-Park-202903.shtml
Via Dwight comes word that “Six defendants in the sweeping criminal prosecution of Raymond ‘Shrimp Boy’ Chow, part of a public corruption and organized crime investigation that ensnared a once-prominent Democratic politician, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, prosecutors said.”
For those playing along on the home game:
George Nieh pleaded guilty to every count filed against him, including 146 counts of money laundering and a slew of weapons and drug charges.
Leslie Yun pleaded guilty to five counts of money laundering and drug-related charges.
Kevin Siu pleaded guilty to eight of the 24 money laundering counts against him, and
Alan Chiu pleaded guilty to 13 of 36 money laundering charges.
Yat Wa Pau pleaded guilty to trafficking in contraband cigarettes and admitted to his involvement in sales of contraband cigarettes worth more than $300,000.
Andy Li pleaded guilty to felony possession of a firearm along with money laundering and marijuana possession.
Funny how California Democratic State Senator Leland Yee, the ostensible “big fish” in the investigation, plead guilty to a single charge, while Nieh (who was reportedly one of Chow’s closest associates), plead guilty to everything.
Hey, remember Donna ISD down in the Rio Grande Valley? You know, where the school board president committed suicide over a vote-buying scandal that followed hot on the heels of a bribery and graft scandal?
“Last year, school officials failed to account for more than $1 million in missing funds. Marking the third consecutive year of unbalanced books, the district’s chief financial officer was removed — and reassigned as director of accounting.”
Snip.
Perched near the Mexican border, Donna schools serve a poor, heavily migrant community where public funds are coveted.
“Everyone is employed by the school district, the city or the county. It’s all about contracts and which friends get the bids,” Rio Grande Valley activist Maricela De Leon told Watchdog.org.
To hammer out those contracts, the board hired Robert J. Salinas, a convicted felon who served federal prison time for money laundering. Salinas now enjoys a $300,000 annual retainer and bills at $250 per hour. In May, Salinas charged the district more than $33,000, according to Breitbart Texas.