Bat Soup Virus Today: COVID Passes And Dems Not To Blame For Job Losses

Have you noticed that most of the doom and gloom surrounding COVID deaths and positive tests has rather dried up since China Joe took office? Have you read any stories about there being 1,815 deaths across the US Sunday? Or, going back to inauguration day, 3322, 3734, 4142, 4370? For a total of 419k? Anyhow, an “analysis” by the Washington Post looks to take the blame off Democratic governors

Shutdowns by Democratic governors did not cause the pandemic jobs crisis

The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than 416,000 Americans and recently pulled the U.S. economic recovery into reverse. Some states have shut down again to get a handle on surging caseloads. And critics have blamed those states’ governors, typically Democrats, for job losses.

But pandemic-related economic research shows the shutdowns aren’t killing jobs; the virus is.

In the first outbreaks last spring, people stayed home to avoid contracting the deadly novel coronavirus, regardless of what their governor said. (snip)

If stay-at-home orders poisoned an otherwise healthy economy, business should have crumpled the moment they kicked in. But cellphone activity data analyzed by Gupta, Simon and Wing show a different trend: People started to stay home well before states imposed shutdowns.

I’ll give Andrew Van Damm the benefit on that part: people were staying home. They were seeing what was going on in China, then the cruise ships, then the devastation in Italy, and were very concerned. Traffic was way, way down at stores, was it not?

The Washington Post often hears from readers who blame job losses on Democratic governors who have often imposed shutdowns when coronavirus cases surge. If Democrats are really responsible for job losses, we would expect to see employment fall off the cliff in blue states while employment in red states sail on untouched. But even the simplest analysis shows job losses don’t depend solely on the governor’s party. Some red states struggled; some blue states thrived.

But, see, the WP and these economists are attempting to really just look at the beginning, rather than what happened when Government starting locking everything down, and so many have kept them locked down. Certainly, I do not want to place all the blame on Democrat governors (and some GOP govs, like Maryland’s Larry Hogan), as they are not all to blame. But, certainly, they played a big part in closing businesses, telling people when businesses could be open, how to operate, and keeping many closed and/or limited. At the end of the day, we should be blaming China, but, the Dem govs sure helped increase the pain, which was meant to let them play their power game, because Dems love government power, along with hurting President Trump, because, let’s face it, a lot of this was political. Notice all the complaints about re-open protests while virtually none about the BLM riots.

This isn’t about science or economics, it’s about setting a Narrative to protect Democrat governors when they come up for election in the next two years, because they sure were blaming Trump for everything, right?

Wilmington firm rolls out its own COVID-19 vaccine ‘passport’

North Carolina-based CastleBranch, a consumer reporting agency, has rolled out its own version of a “digital vaccine passport.”

The Wilmington-based firm, supported by anti-counterfeit technology, is now issuing Real Vaccination ID cards as proof for the COVID-19 vaccination.

“Tracking, storing and reviewing complex medical documents – including vaccine records – is what we do,” its CEO Brett Martin, who founded the the agency more than 20 years ago, told WRAL TechWire.

“If we can help people prove their COVID-19 vaccination status and help them return to everyday life — then that’s a summit worth climbing.”

How soon till Government recommends that companies require this for employment, with companies implementing this “recommendation”?

You’re good with this, right?

Read: Bat Soup Virus Today: COVID Passes And Dems Not To Blame For Job Losses »

We Should Totally Listen To Children On Climate Crisis (scam) Or Something

Think back to when you were in grade school and high school: how smart were you really, in terms of what was actually going on in the world and how to solve things. Are you thinking “yeah, I mostly didn’t know what the hell I was talking about, because I was a child”? As a parent, do you really listen to your kids about Important Things now? Considering this article is from Fortune, would you listen to your kids on economic matters?

Adults should listen to children to understand the severity of the climate crisis

After a depressing and dreary 2020, the new year has not come a moment too soon. The coronavirus pandemic has not yet ended its whirlwind of destruction, and it promises to loom large over the first half of 2021. But one day soon, we can reasonably hope it will be over.

In an effort to look forward to that day and beyond, I have been asking my grandchildren what they want to see happen in the world not just this year, but by 2030. By then, my grandson Ryan will be nearly 20, and his sister Madeleine will be a teenager.

They both call me Captain Planet, a kind label first applied to me by the Harvard Business Review. But superheroes have a habit of being human under the cape. My generation started out as big polluters, becoming climate change converts late in life. Even at Unilever—a company with a history of social responsibility dating back to the 1880s—placing sustainability at the heart of the firm’s strategy was controversial with some of its stakeholders.

By contrast, the adults of 2030 will have understood the fierce urgency of environmental protection all through their childhood. Invited to prescribe what adults should do in the coming nine years, Ryan, who is 10, has a clear five-point plan. Ban gas- and diesel-powered cars; expand the use of solar power; use less electricity; don’t use so much plastic; and fly less. It’s a shopping list to address the energy challenges of this century, and to mitigate the catastrophes humans have wrought on our natural and marine life. To do his bit individually, Ryan also decided recently to become vegetarian and stick to it.

It’s exactly the plan that the kids have been indoctrinated with, particularly in their leftist schools. Hey, let’s give them what they want, at least in their own lives. No more fossil fueled trips in cars or buses to school or anywhere else. Schools will replicate how much energy they could actually get from solar, so, the heat will be turned down to 60 and the AC up to 80. There wouldn’t be enough for charging their phones, having schoolwide WiFi, or laptops/tablets for everyone, so, they’ll just have to share the school resources.

Oh, and give up their plastic smartphones. And plastic gaming systems. And a goodly chunk of their clothes and shoes. And limit their computer time and TV watching time to save electricity.

Talking to Ryan and Madeleine about the planet they will inhabit long after me, reminded me of a Psalm. It is often shortened to “Out of the mouths of babes,” but a fuller rendering is “With praises from children and from tiny infants, you have built a fortress. It makes your enemies silent, and all who turn against you are left speechless.”

Only through concrete action now to build a greener 2030 can we earn the praise of our children and of theirs, building a fortress against the devastation of climate change and quieting those who say we aren’t serious. Ryan, Madeleine, and their whole generation will be watching.

Interesting that the vast majority of these climate cultist parents and grandparents  aren’t practicing what they preach, nor restricting the lives of their kids and grandkids to accord the climate kids’ beliefs.

Read: We Should Totally Listen To Children On Climate Crisis (scam) Or Something »

Biden Set To Sign Raaacist “Made In America” Plan

Remember when Donald Trump’s Buy American plan was deemed racist?

Our history shows there’s a dark side to ‘Buy American’

“We will follow two simple rules,” President Trump promised in his inaugural address. “Buy American and hire American.”

Trump’s program might sound appealing. But the Buy American exhortation follows a long history of similar campaigns steeped in racism, especially against Asians and Asian Americans, that have had real, destructive consequences. It’s not that the Buy American call is racist in itself — there’s nothing wrong with seeking to reinvest our dollars back in good local jobs. The problem lies in the way in which it frames the issues.

That’s the Washington Post, just one of many news outlets calling the plan raaaaacist, mean, isolationist, and many more mean words. Now, though?

Biden set to sign ‘Made in America’ executive order

double standardsPresident Joe Biden is set to sign a “Made in America” executive order Monday, fulfilling a long-time campaign promise to increase the amount of federal spending that goes to American companies.

The announcement comes at a time when the government is set to spend expansively on efforts to defeat COVID-19, and after a period during which vulnerabilities in the U.S. supply chain were exposed as state and local governments resorted to foreign manufacturers to obtain desperately-needed personal protective equipment.

The federal government spends about $600 billion on contracting per year, and there are already rules in place governing how taxpayer dollars can be spent, how much foreign products can be purchased, and how many foreign components can be brought to the U.S. and assembled here. However, waivers and loopholes allow even more foreign product to be purchased than the rules state.

Biden’s executive order will aim to close those loopholes and cut down on the waivers, as well as order an increase in domestic content. It will also redefine what can count as domestic content, create a public website so U.S. companies can more easily see government contract business and determine whether they could make a more competitive bid for it.

I have nothing against a buy American plan, even from Joe (though, the devil is always in the details, right? You never know with a nutty leftist), but, the difference between the reception for Joe’s plan and Trump’s is astounding. The Washington Post isn’t complaining now. Nor are any of the usual suspects. Even the Auto Workers Union was called racist when they called for buying American.

I’m looking forward to all the double standards over the next four years.

Read: Biden Set To Sign Raaacist “Made In America” Plan »

China Joe Voting New Mexico Now Super Concerned Over Drilling Moratorium

New Mexico voted 54-43 for China Joe. But, hey, mean Tweets, right?

We all know that the 60 day moratorium will be more like four years, right? You can bet the leaders in New Mexico know it won’t end as long as Joe (or Kamala) is in office. From the link

President Joe Biden’s 60-day moratorium on new oil and natural gas leases and drilling permits is prompting widespread concerns in New Mexico, where spending on education and other public programs hinges on the industry’s success.

Top Republicans in the state as well as local leaders in communities that border the Permian Basin — one of the most productive regions in the U.S. — say any moves to make permanent the suspension would be economically devastating for the state. Half of New Mexico’s production happens on federal land and amounts to hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties each year.

Congressional members from other western states also are raising concerns, saying the ripple effects of the moratorium will hurt small businesses already struggling because of the pandemic.

“During his inauguration, President Biden spoke about bringing our nation together. Eliminating drilling on public lands will cost thousands of New Mexicans their jobs and destroy what’s left of our state’s economy,” Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway told The Associated Press on Friday. “How does that bring us together? Environmental efforts should be fair and well-researched, not knee-jerk mandates that just hurt an already impoverished state.” (snip)

Industry groups said the order effectively brings all regulatory activity to a halt, from routine requests that arise during the normal course of business to requests for rights of way for new pipelines designed to gather more natural gas as part of efforts to reduce venting and flaring — practices that Democrats have targeted in their fight against climate change.

Yet, Joe is still using fossil fuels to travel around, as are all his appointees. As Jason Chaffetz notes

Hey, New Mexico, you voted for this. You get what you vote for. In this case, thousands and thousands of people will be out of a job. Biden’s pause on oil cause for big concern in New Mexico #BetYouMissTrumpNow

You get what you vote for. Mean tweets from Trump vs really bad policies for America and Americans from Biden.

As a side issue, it also makes you consider “why in the hell does the U.S. government own so much state land?” 34% of New Mexico is owned by the federal government. Over one third. There are certainly states much worse (Ca, Alaska, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, Idaho (yup, 61.6%)), but, Los Federales should not have that much power in a state in a Federal Republic.

Anyhow, when gas prices and energy prices (natural gas) start spiking, don’t blame Trump.

Read: China Joe Voting New Mexico Now Super Concerned Over Drilling Moratorium »

If All You See…

…is an area dried out from climate change, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is Weasel Zippers, with a post on China Joe being caught not wearing a mask, along with coughing.

It’s desert week on IAYS.

Read: If All You See… »

Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup

Olivia De Berardinis Pimup

Happy Sunday! Another gorgeous day in the once and future nation of America. The birds are signing, the sun is shining, and the Devils are above 500 to start the season. This pinup is by Olivia De Berardinis, with a wee bit of help.

What is happening in Ye Olde Blogosphere? The Fine 15

  1. Green Jihad notes that none of Biden’s actions are about healing or unity
  2. JoNova discusses Biden cancelling Keystone XL being a gift to China and Russia
  3. Not A Lot Of People Know That highlights the Met Office blaming ‘climate change’ for winter storm Christoph
  4. American Greatness features Biden’s Fascist unity
  5. American Power discusses having to set his Twitter to private
  6. Blazing Cat Fur notes a California congresscritter calling for a $23 minimum wage
  7. Cold Fury discusses fake Conservatives still working the Reagan grift
  8. Diogenes’ Middle Finger notes an obese man with mental health issues as Assistant Secretary of Health
  9. Geller Report News highlights China Joe’s earpiece coach
  10. IOTW Report covers Joe not being sure what he’s signing
  11. Jihad Watch notes the NY Times loves Iran, and wants you to love it too
  12. Legal Insurrection covers Biden’s gender confused order destroying women’s sports
  13. Liberty’s Torch discusses a really dangerous, free speech killing Democratic bill
  14. Moonbattery covers CNN’s lie about no vaccine plan being debunked
  15. And last, but not least, neo-neocon wonders why D.C. is still an armed camp

As always, the full set of pinups can be seen in the Patriotic Pinup category, or over at my Gallery page (nope, that’s gone, the newest Apache killed access, and the program hasn’t been upgraded since 2014). While we are on pinups, since it is that time of year, have you gotten your “Pinups for Vets” calendar yet? And don’t forget to check out what I declare to be our War on Women Rule 5 and linky luv posts and things that interest me.

Don’t forget to check out all the other great material all the linked blogs have!

Anyone else have a link or hotty-fest going on? Let me know so I can add you to the list. And do you have a favorite blog you can recommend be added to the feedreader?

Read: Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup »

Texas Sues Biden Over Deportations Halt

Day 4 of the China Joe administration, and he’s earned himself his first lawsuit for violations of the law and the Constitution

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Sues Biden for ‘Unlawful’ Halt to Deportations

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against President Joe Biden’s administration for what he says is an “unlawful” executive order that halts deportations of illegal aliens.

Hours after taking office on January 20, Biden signed an executive order that halts deportations of most illegal aliens for at least 100 days. The order comes as illegal immigration has spiked in recent months and a migrant caravan heads to the United States-Mexico border in the hopes of taking advantage of the Biden administration’s lax enforcement policies.

On Friday, Paxton filed a complaint and motion for a temporary restraining order in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in a request that immediately ends Biden’s halt on deportations.

Paxton, in a statement, said Biden’s order “violates the U.S. Constitution, federal immigration and administrative law, and a contractual agreement” between Texas and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

“In one of its first of dozens of steps that harm Texas and the nation as a whole, the Biden administration directed DHS to violate federal immigration law and breach an agreement to consult and cooperate with Texas on that law,” Paxton wrote.

Many of those who ICE deports are murderers, arsonists, rapists, sexual assaulters of children. The Constitution and the law state that people unlawfully present in the United States shall be deported. If China Joe doesn’t like that, then he should ask the duly elected Legislative branch to change the law.

Joe wants them sticking around if caught

This guy would have been kept in the United States under Biden’s order.

Read: Texas Sues Biden Over Deportations Halt »

Goalposts: Soon, Everyone Will Have To Wear An N95 Mask

If we just lockdown for 15 days, we can beat this thing. If everyone would just wash their hands and social distance, we can beat this thing (still good ideas, folks, and don’t touch your face). If everyone would just wear a mask, we can beat this thing. Once we have herd immunity, through vaccines and recovering from COVID, we can beat this thing. And more. They keep finding ways to extend it out. Now?

The face mask that could end the pandemic

Getting Americans masked up is a top priority for the Biden Administration.

Biden, who calls wearing masks “a patriotic act,” signed an executive order Wednesday — his very first as president — to ask Americans to wear masks of their choice for the first 100 days of the new administration. The executive order also requires mask use on all federal property, though in this case, not just any old mask will do.

On Wednesday after the inauguration, White House press secretary Jen Psaki showed off her bright white N95 mask in the press briefing room. “I wore it out, of course, here today and will continue to do that,” Psaki said after removing her medical-grade mask and before turning to questions.

“After removing her medical-grade mask”, and not one complaint from CNN in this article, or any Credentialed Media out.

N95 masks are considered the gold standard in personal protective equipment because they block 95% of large and small particles utilizing a unique electrostatic filter (snip)

Studies have shown that masks significantly decrease the chances of transmitting or contracting the coronavirus. But not all masks provide equal protection. Depending on the fabric and number of layers, homemade and simple cloth masks have a range of effectiveness that can be as low as 26%, which leaves the wearer vulnerable.

But, they told us to just wear a mask, right? Any mask, as long as you had one on?

Some experts like Brigham Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School physician Dr. Abraar Karan have been advocating for public use of N95 masks from the start of the pandemic. In an interview with CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Dr. Karan outlined why N95s are critical at this stage of the pandemic. (snip)

The biggest problem is lack of supply. This week marked a full year of the coronavirus, and the Biden Administration has committed to invoking the Defense Production Act more often to boost manufacture of N95 masks and other critical supplies. Experts hope manufacturing will hit a speed to be able to sufficiently supply the population.

So, yeah, next up is keeping things locked down till these are all available, and then requiring everyone to wear one. Which are disposable, so, a new on each day. Not like your fun mask you wash. And they’ll say you cannot go anywhere without a medical grade mask. Even though they’ll still be in short supply.

Read: Goalposts: Soon, Everyone Will Have To Wear An N95 Mask »

If All You See…

…is the US flag, which is now a great country because it rejoined the Paris Climate agreement, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is The Other McCain, with a post on buyer’s remorse.

Read: If All You See… »

#Unity: China Joe Considers Turning Over Trump’s Tax Records To House

Well, this will totally help the nation come together and heal, right? Deciding to turn over the private tax records of someone who is now a private citizen

Biden administration weighs turning over Trump tax returns to House Democrats

Move OnHouse Democrats have renewed their long-stalled demand for Donald Trump’s federal tax records, but the Biden administration has not decided whether it will drop its predecessor’s objections and release the Treasury Department records to investigators, Justice Department attorneys told a federal judge Friday.

U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden declined Friday to lift a stay on a pending House lawsuit. Instead, the judge agreed to give Treasury and Justice Department officials two weeks to report back to him, acknowledging that President Biden’s team was just settling in after the inauguration this week.

McFadden also kept in place an order requiring the government to give the former president’s lawyers 72 hours’ notice before releasing his tax return information to allow them to file a request to block the release.

Separation-of-powers issues that have slowed the case “may fall out” now that Trump is no longer in office, the judge noted.

“It would be a former president trying to stop a political branch, rather than one branch suing another. At least that’s my instinct,” said McFadden, a 2017 Trump appointee to the federal bench in Washington.

This really should be so simple: the law has massive restrictions on releasing the private tax records of any American without just cause, and it’s quite clear this is a partisan fishing expedition, looking for anything. If the GOP was trying to get Biden’s tax records, or those of any other Democrat, in such a way I would be 100% against it. For one thing, it is just improper. For another, it sets a precedent. A really bad one. What if the Dems get his tax records now, and then a Republican wins the White House in 2024 and the GOP controls the House, and want Joe’s tax records, a basic fishing expedition? Do you think Democrats would be OK with that? Do the want a tit for tat? We literally have a Right against this

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

At what point is this “reasonable” to do a fishing expedition on someone’s private documents?

Also, he said the Treasury Department and the House historically have always agreed that requests made under the 1924 law giving the tax-writing committee authority to seek tax returns and other records in overseeing the effectiveness of the Internal Revenue Service’s audit program survive the turnover of Congress.

The House has been stymied for months, “numerous investigations have been obstructed,” and “enough is enough,” Letter argued, saying, “The statute here is clear. ‘Shall’ means ‘shall,’ and therefore the Treasury Department should turn over these materials . . . and that should be the end of it.”

That law requires there to be a serious reason, not just “we want them to attempt to get Trump, we’re just not sure how.” This is dangerous to the rule of law, and certainly won’t turn the political stove down.

Read: #Unity: China Joe Considers Turning Over Trump’s Tax Records To House »

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