Dear “spontaneous” demonstration participants,

I was in high school once. And I remember how little I cared about the opinions of people my parents age.

But I was blessed to of gone to high school at a time when the teacher staff at my school included a fair number of Vietnam, Korea and World War II veterans.

And one of the unmistakable lessons we got, back in my teenage years, was that “having people pay attention to your opinion is something you earn”.

One does not “earn” this by appropriating other peoples sorrow; and it’s more than a little bit ghoulish to try

Bilge like this isn’t helping. You are wrong on every factual point, and I strongly suspect you’re not smart enough to listen long enough to figure that out.

That is all..

Given the vigor with which Scandinavian countries (and those who romanticize their welfare states with all the subtlety of Swedish Chef Night at Karaoke Hut) play up the “gender equality” card, you’d think they’d have the whole “gender equity” thing figured out.

You’d be wrong.

Comparing the Nordic countries with each other, a pattern emerges: Those with more extensive welfare-state policies have fewer women on top. Iceland, which has a moderately sized welfare state, has the most women managers. Second is Sweden, which has opened up welfare services such as education, health care, and elder care for private-sector competition. Denmark, which has the highest taxes and the biggest welfare state in the modern world, has the lowest share of women in managerial positions.

The rise of the welfare state has been a double-edged sword for women’s advancement.Essentially, the rise of the welfare state has been a double-edged sword for women’s advancement. On the one hand, it has created jobs in women-dominated fields such as health care and education, and aided the labor-market entry of women by offering day care and other family-related services. On the other, the attendant high taxes have reduced the economic incentive for both parents to work full-time, and have also made it difficult for families to purchase services that alleviate household work (such as cleaning). Parental-leave policies have given women an incentive to take long breaks from working. And state monopolies in female-dominated sectors such as health care and education have limited women’s career choices.

Also worth noting – Scandinavian societies going back to the Vikings gave women rights they wouldn’t have for centuries elsewhere in the world – the rights to own land, inherit property, and file for divorce.   An astonishing level of gender equality predated the Scandinavian social state by centuries.  Not that that stops the left from claiming credit they dind’t earn.

ivvIf you’ve been readint thias blog any length of time3, you know how “unintended conse3qiuences” work.

If you are a hack social science researcher who dabbles badly in pseudo-science and fatuous wrenchings of correlation into causation, you are living in a golden age.  Even Scientific American is running your drivel, and paying for it, with a straight face.

As we see in this piece – which attributes (white) men “stockpiling” guns to…

…well, pick your threadbare feminist trope:

The short, broad-brush answer to the first part of that question is this: men, who on average possess almost twice the number of guns female owners do. But not all men. Some groups of men are much more avid gun consumers than others. The American citizen most likely to own a gun is a white male—but not just any white guy. According to a growing number of scientific studies, the kind of man who stockpiles weapons or applies for a concealed-carry license meets a very specific profile.

These are men who are anxious about their ability to protect their families, insecure about their place in the job market, and beset by racial fears. They tend to be less educated. For the most part, they don’t appear to be religious—and, suggests one study, faith seems to reduce their attachment to guns. In fact, stockpiling guns seems to be a symptom of a much deeper crisis in meaning and purpose in their lives. Taken together, these studies describe a population that is struggling to find a new story—one in which they are once again the heroes.

Of course, we’re in the post-logic era – where the last thing you should look for in Scientific Ameircan is “Science”.

Turn, instead, to actual science – the evolutionary science that so many on the left chant their fealty to when it’s time to vent their two minutes’ hate against Christian fundamentalists, but which nearly none of them supports when it comes down to the many areas where evolution kills and dresses out their sacred political cows.

American men – especially American men in the Red States – are buying guns because it fulfills the evolutionary imperative to protect what is yours, and those who depend on you – and a rational person sees that a gun is a useful tool toward that end.

Scientific American’s not going to pay for that insight, though.

…only the police have the training necessary to deal with spree killers.  You should check your right to defend yourself at the door and let the cops do the difficult work.

The problem with Snopes isn’t that they’re biased to the left (although they very well may be).

The problem with Snopes is – much like banished commenter Dog Gone – they seem to think “Big Left’s Current Cant” is interchangeable with fact.

As we see here, it just isn’t so.

Snopes.com recently fact-checked a post that we first put up in June 2015 and updated on January 7, 2016.  This became an issue for them because a story that Fox News’ Special Report that had run a couple years ago was getting circulated on Facebook after the Florida high school shooting.  They wrote: “Our conclusion is that this is accurate based on the CPRC’s definition of a mass shooting, but also extremely misleading. It uses inappropriate statistical methods to obscure the reality that mass shootings are very rare in most countries, so that when they do happen they have an outsized statistical effect.”

Watching the CPRC go on to flense Snopes’ claim is joyful thing.  Give it a read.

Joe Doakes from Como Park emails:

This pop-gun has a thumb hole stock.

That makes it an assault weapon, under the bill proposed by Democrats. Can’t be too careful.

You might think Joe’s being facetious.

If you do, you:

1. don’t remember the 1994-2004 Assault Weapons ban
2. Haven’t had kids in school in recent years.

Patricia Torres Ray’s “Kill Our Students” bill.

Join me from 1-3PM today on the NARN!

Today on the show:

• Lloyd Cheney on the anti-Muslim resolutions at some GOP conventions

Don’t forget – King Banaian is on from 9-11AM on AM1440, and Brad Carlson is  on “The Closer” edition of the NARN Sundays from 2-3PM.

So tune in the Northern Alliance! You have so many options:

• AM1280 in the Metro
• Streaming at AM1280’s Website
• Streaming on IHeartRadio
• On Twitter (the Volume 2 show will use hashtag #narn2)
• Via my UStream video and chat channel.
• Send us an SMS text message – 651-243-0390
• Good ol’ telephone – 651-289-4488
• Podcasts are now available; for my show and for Brad’s
• And make sure you fan us on our new Facebook page!

Join us!

Bernie Sanders attends a fun-grab rally…

…surrounded by armed security.

Some lives are more worth defending than others.

New Prague student who joined the nationally-coordinated, Bloomberg-funded, District-supported “spontaneous walkout” over “gun violence” with a pro-2nd-Amendment sign…

…oh, do I even need to finish the sentence?

“I came out here with a poster trying to make a difference,” said Andy Dalsin, a senior.

Dalsin said principal Lonnie Seifert told him to give up a sign that read “Guns don’t kill people. People kill people” or leave the property, citing district policy.

“I stood in the back,” he said. “I didn’t try and cause a ruckus, but I was seen by the principal and he came and we had our exchange.”

The district said in a statement that “such items must be submitted to and reviewed by school administration at least 24 hours in advance.”

The whole sham “youth protest” is part of a narrative to push the perception that yoots are anti-gun in he first place.

It was never about “free speech”. It’s about conquering the culture.

UPDATE:  Should you ever bet against the depravity of Big Left’s minions?  No, you should not.

UPDATE 2:  Should you really assume any of them know the issue well enough that policy-makers – or people serious about policy in area – should take them seriously?    Again – no, you should not.

UPDATE 3;  And if you are one of the packs of students that beclowns themselves  with thuggery and violence, they’ll let you do it again to get a better photo op.

UPDATE 4:  According to reliable sources, New Prague public schools have taken down their Facebook page, and the principal is unavailable until late next week for any comment on the subject.

UPDATE 5: Failure to exercise free speech as directed will not be tolerated.

Minnesota has a miniimum wage of $9 an hour.

Minor league baseball players, working on a (very low) salary and putting in long hours, frequently earn less than that.

Saint Paul is about to phase its minimum wage up to $15 an hour.  That’s pretty much more than anyone on a Single-A team makes.

And so the Saint Paul Saints – after wheedling a stadium out of the city’s taxpayers – say they may have to shut down if they don’t get an exemption:

Noting league rules limit the baseball team’s payroll, the Saints say without the exemption they could possibly be forced to cease operations.

“We’re in a league that has a salary cap,” Saints Executive Vice President and General Manager Derek Sharrer told state lawmakers earlier this week. “So … if minimum wage and overtime laws were to impact us, then we may be in a position to not be able to abide by our league bylaws, which would force us not to be able to operate.”

The issue comes just three years after the Saints moved into their new home, CHS Field, in downtown St. Paul. Public funds contributed $51.4 million to the ballpark’s construction.

They’ll get it.  Lawmakers love sports teams.

All the businesses in Saint Paul without the same level of political clout?

Let’s just watch the implosion.

Facebook – which is unstinting about signaling its progressive virtue domestically – is being assessed some culpability in the oppression of the Rohynga minority in Burma:

A U.N. fact-finding mission has highlighted the role of social media networks, and Facebook in particular, in fueling hate speech against the Rohingya minority in Myanmar, telling the U.N. Human Rights Council this week that “incitement to violence” is “rampant” and “unchecked.”

Reuters reports that in an interim submission to the U.N. Human Rights Council, fact-finding mission chair Marzuki Darusman emphasized the “determining role” of social media networks in the conflict, which he said “substantively contributed to the level of acrimony and dissension and conflict” in Myanmar. “As far as the Myanmar situation is concerned, social media is Facebook, and Facebook is social media,” Darusman told reporters.

Granted, it’s only the UN.  And it’s a broadside against hate speech – which is applicable in this case, but Facebook will use it as further grounds to stifle conservative speech even further.

Still, it’s nice to see virtue-signallers get slapped.

SCENE:  Mitch BERG is grabbing a bag of Banh Mi at iPho on University Avenue when Avery LIBRELLE walks in behind him. 

LIBRELLE:  Merg!

BERG:  Oh… (seeks a way out, doesn’t see one) Hey.  How’s things?

LIBRELLE:  The ReThuglicons are going to get crushed in the mid-terms!

BERG:  Do tell.

LIBRELLE:  Because it looks like Conor Lamb is going to win the Pennsylvania special Congressional election.

BERG:  Ah.  So a former Marine and 2nd Amendment supporter who is a lot more like the type of people Democrats used to elect fifty years ago than anything east coast or metro Democrat party has nominated outside the Iron Range and West Virginia in decades, and who’d get doxxed into receivership or beaten into a coma if he tried to run for office in Minneapolis or Chicago or Manhattan, is your big bout of good news?

LIBRELLE:  You’re racist.

BERG:  Naturally.   (Pays for his order, then notices somethingi) Er, Avery?  Are you going to order something.

LIBRELLE:  Oh, heavens no.  I’m just taking readings on the owners’ privilege.

(and SCENE)

Virtue, signaled (two weeks ago):

Dick’s Sporting Goods will no longer sell assault-style firearms, will ban high-capacity magazines and will not sell any guns to people younger than 21, the company announced Wednesday, a significant move for the retail giant in the midst of renewed calls for national gun reform.

Chief executive Edward W. Stack made the announcement during an appearance on “Good Morning America”, as well as through a company statement that said “thoughts and prayers are not enough” in the wake of America’s latest mass shooting. Two weeks ago, a gunman killed 17 people, most of them teenagers, in Parkland, Fla., with an AR-15 that was legally purchased. The alleged shooter, Nikolas Cruz, bought a shotgun from a Dick’s store in November, Stack said during the television interview.

Although the weapon purchased at the Dick’s outlet was not the one used in the massacre, Stack said his company was moved to act.

Virtue signal, responded to

Dick’s, which reported fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday, said same store sales fell 2%, double the decline analysts expected…In a call with analysts, Chief Executive Ed Stack acknowledged that the new policy is “not going to be positive from a traffic and sales standpoint.”

It is difficult to say just how extensive the impact will be. Assault rifles were previously sold at three dozen of the company’s Field & Stream stores. Mr. Stack says the company has already seen pushback. “Some of those customers that buy firearms [from Dick’s] buy other things also.” They may not shop at Dick’s at all anymore, he said.

That loss is reflected in the company’s outlook. It expects same-store sales will range from flat to a single-digit decline this year. It also said that it will no longer provide analysts and investors with a quarterly outlook, underscoring the sense that the company is troubled.

It’s not all about guns.  Dick’s, like a lot of national chains, is having a hard time adjusting to a market where Amazon, as well as a raft of e-commerce retailers like CheaperThanDirt, are eating up immense market share.

But the gun thing?  That’s gonna leave a mark.

…that if we didn’t vote for Hillary, all sorts of unprecedented craziness would break out in the Middle East.

And they were right.

Six years ago, Venezuela banned private firearms ownership,  via a piece of legislation that had to have sent a tingle down Linda Slocum, Erin Maye Quade, Jamie Becker-Finn and Dave Pinto’s spines.   It was done to consolidate and reinforce the control of a government that, one might suspect in concept had to have sent a tingle down Linda Slocum, Erin Maye Quade, Jamie Becker-Finn and Dave Pinto’s spines.

Of course, we know the results; socialism degenerated “unexpectedly” into thugocracy (which, being “haves” in a socialist society, wouldn’t not send a tingle down Linda Slocum, Erin Maye Quade, Jamie Becker-Finn and Dave Pinto’s spines, necessarily – socialism is a wonderful thing for the kommissars).

And here we are today.

The left would like you to consider them separate events.

They are not.

Due to a perfect storm of nagging events, posting will be on the light side today.

Progs at Evergreen State (but I repeat myself) equate science and white supremacy:

Earlier this week, some graffiti was spotted on campus that sought to couterpose intersectionality and the sciences, equating the latter with white supremacy. Facilities staff have completed the chore of cleaning up the graffiti.

Bret Weinstein – the former ESU bio prof who became a national symbol for the intolerant left, had a riposte:

George,

During the @EvergreenStCol riots, students of color were chastised as traitors for studying science, science faculty were hunted, and you ordered campus police to stay out of it. Don’t pretend this graffiti is surprising. These are your chickens, home to roost.

Bret pic.twitter.com/A1hLaVOTt9

— Bret Weinstein (@BretWeinstein) March 9, 2018

Remember this Berg’s Seventh Law violation next time some liberal bobblehead coos that the left is the party of science.

Joe Doakes from Como Park emails

All the polls showed Hillary winning in a walk.  When she didn’t, her original claim was the Russians must have hacked into electronic voting machines to change vote totals.  When that was disproved, it changed to collusion between the Russians and the Trump campaign to steal Hillary’s emails and thereby persuade Americans she was a crook.  When that didn’t pan out, it changed to Russian “meddling” in the election by placing Facebook ads and fake news stories to mislead voters.  If the Democrats lose in the midterms, they’ll insist it wasn’t their fault, it was the Russians.
When Liberals lose, they have three arguments:  we must not have gotten our message out because if we had, sensible voters would have agreed with us [see also “What’s The Matter with Kansas” by Thomas Franks – Ed.] ; we did get our message out but the voters are stupid, racist, haters bitterly clinging to their guns and Bibles; or we got our message out and persuaded the voters but due to some outside force like weather or confusing ballots, we wuz robbed.
The Russian hack and Russian collusion claims are variations on We Wuz Robbed.  The Russian Meddling claim is Voters Are Stupid (because they fell for fake news).  Frankly, it’s all a bit insulting.  I got their message, I understood it, and I rejected it because their policies are bat-s**t crazy and their candidate was an evil witch.  And that’s the real problem – Liberals can’t acknowledge those as valid reasons to vote against them because doing so would mean Liberals themselves are crazy.  Nope, can’t be that.  Must be the Russians.
Now, about the recent fiasco in Texas, where Democrats were predicting a Blue Wave and had a record turn-out only to find Cruz had an even bigger turnout . . . which excuse will Liberals use?
Joe Doakes

Russians.  If only because the shelf date on Serbs passed 15 years ago.

Why, you may ask?

Because it seems to be collapsing.

And Big Left needs a boogeyman to flog (other than the NRA) to turn out the droogs.

…that draws the toxically arrogant and depraved with such crystalline efficiency?

About thirty years ago, Big Media spread the word; forget the bars, meet the next significant other at…

…the supermarket.

Which sent millions of lonely hearts trudging through the aisles, finding nothing but, well, food.

The meme is back.  And I’m pretty convinced it’s a PR stunt by the National Supermarket Marketing Council.

Benefit for Keegan Iverson is tomorrow at That Cooking School in Lilydale (it’s just east of 35E on Highway 13) from 3-7 PM.  $15 gets you corned beef and cabbage; shamrock shakes are a buck.

Keegan Iverson is a USAF vet who was in a very serious motorcycle accident, and could use the help.  Hope you can get there (I have a prior engagement in the other corner of the metro area, but I’ll do my best!)

Join me from 1-3PM today on the NARN!

Today on the show:

• Lori Sturdevant never gets any smarter or more accurate.
• Being Connected With The Saint Paul DFL means never having to say “I’ve got no idea what to do with all this patronage money”.
• Throwing down on the “No Muslims in the MNGOP” crowd, Part 2
• Some big news about an upcoming station event
• Some big news about…the station!

Don’t forget – King Banaian is on from 9-11AM on AM1440, and Brad Carlson is  on “The Closer” edition of the NARN Sundays from 2-3PM.

So tune in the Northern Alliance! You have so many options:

• AM1280 in the Metro
• Streaming at AM1280’s Website
• Streaming on IHeartRadio
• On Twitter (the Volume 2 show will use hashtag #narn2)
• Via my UStream video and chat channel.
• Send us an SMS text message – 651-243-0390
• Good ol’ telephone – 651-289-4488
• Podcasts are now available; for my show and for Brad’s
• And make sure you fan us on our new Facebook page!

Join us!

“I accepted the results of an opinion poll taken in a country where it was illegal to hold certain opinions. You can imagine the poll-taking process: “Hello, Mr. Peasant, I’m an inquisitive and frightening stranger. God knows who I work for. Would you care to obstensibly support the dictatorship which controls every facet of your existence, or shall we put you down as in favor of the UNO opposition and just tear up your ration card right here and now?””

— P. J. O’Rourke, Give War A Chance

I got an email from Minnesota Public Radio news the other day.

And it was a tough call.

On the one hand, I generally think MPR News is above board.  Generally.

On the other, they have gotten funding for “gun violence” coverage from the Joyce Foundation which was, before Michael Bloomberg’s billions inundated the market, the biggest funder of criminal-safety groups in the US.  And while I can’t show a cause-and-effect relationship, I have my suspicions that that funding caused MPR to make some bad editorial decisions.  (I’ve asked MPR News for comment – but they don’t talk on an official basis with plebeians).

I thought about it.

Then I read the website the email linked to (images of survey provided below; click on them to see full size).

And I just have to ask (although MPR never answers questions) = are you serious?

Did anyone actually answer?

I mean, I would – I own no guns, because they terrify me, and I’d never shoot another human being for any reason.

But given MPR’s close ties to the Metro DFL, I would just love to know what they were thinking – and what they thought shooters would think.