AT&T Indoctrinating Workers with Hate: ‘White People, You Are the Problem’

Is racism still a major problem in the U.S. today? As long as companies like AT&T continue to tell their employees “white people, you are the problem,” the answer to that question is a definite yes.

The AT&T Corporation promoted this vile rhetoric as part of a company initiative called “Listen Understand Act,” which teaches far-left principles regarding race and equity.

Prominent CRT critic Christopher F. Rufo spoke to a senior employee at AT&T “who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity” and sifted through the “Listen Understand Act” program documents before publishing a report on the scandal in City Journal.

When the program first launched last year, AT&T CEO John Stankey admitted it was meant as an “obligation to engage on this issue of racial injustice” and push for “systemic reforms in police departments across the country.”

According to Rufo, the program “is based on the core principles of critical race theory, including ‘intersectionality,’ ‘systemic racism,’ ‘white privilege,’ and ‘white fragility.'”

Indeed, many of the figures responsible for these detestable ideas are featured heavily throughout.

According to the source documents obtained by Rufo, the program encourages employees to read books by race hustlers like Robin DiAngelo, Ibram X. Kendi, Ta-Nehisi Coates and Michael Eric Dyson, all of whom have promoted extremely racist ideas, including the notion that all white people are inherently racist.

The program itself doesn’t hide behind these authors, however. AT&T seems to have no problem telling its white employees how racist they are.

“On the first page of AT&T’s Listen Understand Act internal portal, the company encourages employees to study a resource called ‘White America, if you want to know who’s responsible for racism, look in the mirror,'” Rufo reported.

“The article claims that the United States is a ‘racist society’ and lays out its thesis plainly: ‘White people, you are the problem. Regardless of how much you say you detest racism, you are the sole reason it has flourished for centuries.'”

Furthermore, Rufo’s anonymous source added that managers at the company are required to participate in diversity programs based around such principles and “white employees” are “tacitly expected to confess their complicity in ‘white privilege’ and ‘systemic racism’ lest they be “penalized in their performance reviews.”

Employees must also sign a “loyalty pledge” to “keep pushing for change,” with the program suggesting such actions as “reading more about systemic racism” and “challenging others’ language that is hateful.”

“If you don’t do it,” the senior employee reportedly told City Journal, “you’re [considered] a racist.”

There are many names for the left’s new racist framework.

Critical race theory, diversity equity and inclusion, racial equity and social justice, to name a few examples.

All of these terms amount to the same idea — that skin color is essential to one’s identity and that there is no such thing as an individual; everyone is merely a mindless drone representing their race as a whole.

That’s what white supremacists and neo-Nazis believe. It’s what left-wing racial-justice protesters believe.

And now, apparently, it’s what the heads at AT&T believe.

https://flagandcross.com/att-indoctrinating-workers-with-hate-white-people-you-are-the-problem/

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Yet Another Afghan Refugee Has Been Charged with Rape

A month after Katie reported that two Afghan refugees were indicted on federal charges, including those to do with domestic violence and sex with a minor, another refugee is being charged with rape. According to Elizabeth Faddis with the Washington Examiner, Zabihullah Mohmand, 19, was charged by the state of Montana with having sexual intercourse without consent. His alleged victim is known as "Jane Doe," 18.

As explained in an affidavit filed on October 18 in the Justice Court of Record for the County of Missoula, Doe had been out drinking with friends and she, a female friend, Mohmand and two other unidentified men left for a house party. When it turned out that the house party did not exist, Mohmand asked Doe to go back to his hotel with her. She agreed to but repeatedly told him she didn't want anything to happen.

Doe disclosed that she went to sleep but woke up to Mohmand on top of her. "I just couldn't get him off me," she said, according to the filing. "I had sex with one of them. What was I supposed to do?" Her "neck had significant bruising and red marks on the sides of her neck," according to the court documents. "Doe disclosed that the defendant had also held her to the bed by placing his hand around her neck and using force to do so."

Ultimately, Doe got dressed and left when Mohmand was not looking, though he followed her out and tried to stop her from leaving. He also tried to repeatedly call her.

While Mohmand admits to having had sex with Doe, he said that it was consensual and that the marks were from him kissing her neck. According to the court documents, Mohmand "claimed Doe wanted him very badly and was coming on to him."

Mohmand did admit though that Doe was intoxicated. He described Doe as "very" drunk, according to the court documents, to the point where it impacted the victim's ability to walk. In Montana, intoxication can impact a person's ability to give consent. He also denied that Doe had left anything behind, but she claimed she had left her bra and socks at the hotel room, which were later recovered.

Reporting from Connor McCauley with NBC Montana included statements from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services confirming Mohmand is in the country as part of the federal resettlement program:

Jon Ebelt with DPHHS says Zabihullah Mohmand, 19, “was placed in Montana as part of the federal Afghan Placement and Assistance Program.”

He told law enforcement he is on a worldwide trip from Afghanistan visiting Missoula.

DPHHS manages the Montana State Refugee Program. As such, this program is working with individuals arriving in Montana as part of the Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. As of today, 20 individuals (combination of adults and children) are in Montana (Missoula) as part of the Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. This is since late September. To be clear, federal agencies are responsible for the vetting process prior to their arrival,” Ebelt told KECI News in an email.

McCauley had also reported on comments from Montana lawmakers:

Gov. Greg Gianforte says Mohmand did not have a Special Immigrant Visa status.

The governor, along with U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale, is calling for a re-evaluation of the vetting process before resettlement efforts can be continued in Montana.

“I called on the Biden administration to make sure that these refugees are fully vetted. It’s not clear to us what occurred in this situation, so we are asking the Biden administration to halt the placement of refugees here until they can assure us that the people that are being placed -- our allies have been fully vetted,” Gianforte said during a press conference Thursday.

“The simple fact that we just saw an assault -- a rape -- take place in Missoula this past weekend, and now we are getting reports that it was from a humanitarian parolee stresses the necessity that we have a better accounting of who is coming into our country,” Rosendale said in an interview Thursday.

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines has also commented on the case, saying in a statement that the response from the Biden administration has been insufficient.

Daines is demanding detailed information about Mohmand’s vetting and screening process prior to being placed in Montana.

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester said in a statement that the report is deeply disturbing and reaffirmed his belief that all Afghan refugees must be fully vetted.

Mohmand will be arraigned on November 1.

As Leah covered last month, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas revealed that of the 60,000 Afghan evacuees in the United States, only about 3 percent, or roughly 1,800, are Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/rebeccadowns/2021/10/23/yet-another-afghan-refugee-has-been-charged-with-rape-n2597930

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WOW! Hypocrite Squad Called to 'Defund Police' While Spending $100k On Private Security

The hypocrisy never seems to end with Democrats...does it??

Despite calling to "defund the police," the Squad reportedly spend $100,000 on private security. Imagine that. Private citizens don't deserve to have police officers and security but they do?

Fox News reports that “Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and other members of the far-left “Squad” collectively spent nearly $100,000 on private security in the third financial quarter despite promoting the defund the police movement."

“Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign spent over $10,000 on private policing with Cest Bond Collective, Three Bridges NY LLC and Tullis World Wide Protection, eclipsing Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s, D-Mass., personal security bill of almost $4,000 with Ware Security Consultants Inc., FEC records show,” the report added.

They also called out Reps. Ilhan Omar and Cori Bush as well:

“Omar’s FEC records revealed the defund law enforcement advocate has spent over $22,000 on private security with Aegis Logistics LLC and Lloyd Security Services while Bush took the cake by throwing down another $65,000 on private security,” Fox News added.

https://dailypatriotreport.com/wow-hypocrite-squad-called-to-defund-police-while-spending-100k-on-private-security/

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Poland votes to keep working on 'stop LGBT' law that would ban pride parades and gatherings that 'promote same sex relationships'

Poland's lawmakers voted Friday to continue work on legislation dubbed 'Stop LGBT,' which would ban pride parades and other public gatherings or actions deemed to 'promote' same-sex relationships.

Dominated by the right-wing ruling coalition, the lower house of parliament voted to send the proposed legislation to the interior affairs commission.

Opposition wanted to reject it the move, which is a citizen's legislative initiative submitted to parliament by conservative activists who collected some 140,000 signatures of support.

A small group of protesters gathered outside parliament at the time of the decision. At its initial reading Thursday, the proposal drew strong condemnation from opposition lawmakers.

If adopted, the legislation would outlaw annual LGBT parades in Warsaw and many other Polish cities. Participants in such parades in some smaller cities have in the past faced physical and verbal attacks from far-right and nationalist groups.

In a statement Thursday, the human rights group Amnesty International said that if adopted as law, the proposal would place the rights of LGBT people in Poland 'at greater risk than ever.'

It was not clear when the proposal would return for more debate by the full chamber of parliament.

It would also need approval from the Senate, where the opposition has a small minority capable of altering drafts, and from conservative President Andrzej Duda.

In recent years Polish right-wing ruling politicians and the president have lashed out at what they call 'LGBT ideology,' presenting it as a set of harmful ideas that prematurely sexualize young people and threaten the country's traditional Roman Catholic and family values.

Polish lawmakers held an emotional debate Thursday on the proposed legislation.

One of the activists who presented the bill, Krzysztof Kasprzak, opened his speech to lawmakers by describing the LGBT rights movement as a form of totalitarianism. He compared it to Nazism, and accused it of seeking 'to overthrow the natural order and introduce terror.'

A string of opposition lawmakers - on the left, center and even from a conservative group - denounced the proposed legislation as inhumane, homophobic or a violation of the right to assembly guaranteed in Poland's constitution.

It got the praise of lawmakers on the far right, while Piotr Kaleta, a lawmaker with the ruling right-wing conservative party, Law and Justice, held up photos allegedly showing scenes from pride parades that he described as shocking.

'We want normality in Poland,' Kaleta said. 'If you accuse us of being in the Middle Ages, then we want to be in these Middle Ages.'

Poland's right-wing nationalist government is already involved in a bitter dispute with the European Union over judicial independence and law primacy.

Under Polish law, citizens can submit legislative proposals to parliament if they get the signatures of at least 100,000 eligible voters. The Life and Family Foundation, which lobbied successfully for a recent restriction on abortion rights, gathered 140,000 signatures for its 'Stop LGBT' proposal.

In a statement Thursday, the human rights group Amnesty International said that if adopted as law, the proposal would place the rights of LGBT people in Poland 'at greater risk than ever.'

'We call on Polish (lawmakers) to recognize that love is love, and reject this hateful proposal which is discriminatory to its core,' said Amnesty's Nils Muiznieks.

'This initiative may not have originated with the Polish government, but let us be clear: the government's normalization of hateful rhetoric has created an environment in which people feel empowered to spew bigotry,' Muiznieks added.

In recent years Polish lawmakers, including the president, have lashed out at what they call 'LGBT ideology,' presenting it as something that prematurely sexualizes young people and threatens the country's traditional Roman Catholic values.

Most of the anti-LGBT rhetoric has come during election campaigns, though two years ago dozens of Polish communities passed resolutions declaring themselves to be free of 'LGBT ideology' or adopted family charters stressing that families are based on unions of men and women.

But recently, facing the threat of a loss of EU funding, some Polish regions have revoked the anti-LGBT resolutions.

The vote came after the European parliament sued the European Commission in a dispute over the rule of law, centred on Poland.

The lawsuit was submitted today against the Commission for its 'failure to apply the Conditionality Regulation to the Court of Justice'.

The regulation, adopted last year, allows the EU to suspend payments to countries where the rule of law is under threat, which is currently taking place in Poland.

The Commission has not used the regulation despite Poland sparking a crisis with the bloc, and fears of a 'Polexit', after the country's Supreme Court ruled their laws had legal primacy over EU diktats.

EU Parliament president Sassoli said after submitting the lawsuit: 'As requested in parliamentary resolutions, our legal service has brought an action against the European Commission for failure to apply the Conditionality Regulation to the Court of Justice today.

'We expect the European Commission to act in a consistent manner and live up to what President von der Leyen stated during our last plenary discussion on this subject. Words have to be turned into deeds.'

The Commission and Poland remain locked in a struggle over Warsaw's adherence to EU legal and democratic norms.

Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said the EU executive will use 'all instruments at our disposal' to force Poland to backtrack on decisions seen as rolling back democratic standards, particularly Warsaw's moves seen as undermining judicial independence.

After the EU threatened sanctions against Poland, Morawiecki responded earlier on Monday with comments that the bloc is starting World War III and 'putting a gun to our head'.

* When asked if Poland could use its veto power to block legislation in retaliation, Morawiecki told the Financial Times: 'If they start the third world war, we are going to defend our rights with any weapons which are at our disposal.' *

In dispute: Poland argues the way the law is being applied blocks the country from applying its own constitution and could force it to apply unconstitutional laws laid down by EU courts

What Poland's court said: The EU is acting outside of its remit by preventing the country from acting as a sovereign state, and that Polish law should take precedence

Court ruling: Judges found that, by interfering in the process of appointing judges, the EU is preventing Poland from acting as a sovereign nation and that the President's decision-making must take precedence

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki last week addressed the European Parliament to defend his government's stance, accusing the Commission of 'blackmail' and trampling member states' sovereignty.

The issue dominated an EU summit at the end of last week during which Germany and France tried to ease tensions by essentially kicking the issue down the road to the next summit in December.

The Commission meanwhile is holding back 36 billion euros ($42 billion) in coronavirus recovery grants and loans to Poland until it bends on the judicial row.

Earlier this week, Poland was ordered to pay a penalty of 1 million euros (£845,000) per day until it complies with the European Union's top court's order to scrap disciplinary rules for judges.

Deputy Justice Minister Sebastian Kaleta said the demand for 1 million euros was 'usurpation and blackmail' in comments posted on Twitter.

The move towards fines comes after Morawiecki accused the EU of 'starving' and 'punishing' his country by withholding £48billion in Covid relief money after Warsaw ruled that its constitution took precedence over European law.

Ultimately, at the heart of the row is the question of who should have the most power within the bloc - each individual nation over its citizens or the EU institutions over the member nations. It was the prime mover behind the exit of Britain from the EU, and it has stirred passions in several Eastern and Central European nations like Poland and Hungary.

The fine imposed Wednesday comes on top of a 500,000-euro daily fine the Court of Justice ordered Poland last month to pay for having ignored its injunction to close the Turow brown coal mine. The ruling came in a dispute between Poland and the Czech Republic.

Poland argues it cannot do without some 7% of its energy that the Turow power plant is generating. Morawiecki has indicated Poland is prepared to pay, and can afford it.

These additional burdens on the state budget come as there is a possibility Poland will not be getting some 36 billion euros in EU funds earmarked for recovery from the pandemic because of the rule of law despite with Brussels.

Poland and Hungary are bitterly opposed to agreements negotiated last year as the EU's £1.5trillion Covid recovery budget was agreed, which linked the funding to enforcing laws such as equality and human rights legislation.

Both countries are led by right-wing populist parties who have been involved in long-running spats with the EU over the independence of courts, freedom of the press, and LGBT rights.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10145671/Poland-votes-working-stop-LGBT-law-ban-pride-parades.html

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My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

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Arizona electoral fraud

Maricopa County, Arizona, has been an important key to unearthing the truth behind the fraudulent 2020 Presidential Election. A forensic audit of the results from this critical piece to the puzzle has produced many alarming discoveries.

Nevertheless, there has been an overwhelming attempt to try to ignore anything that helps prove the obvious. Democrats stole the presidency from President Trump. Many are beginning to realize how it was done. Maricopa County isn’t the only evidence of “the steal”.

However, the radical leftist mainstream media refuses to discuss the obvious. In fact, the propaganda spewing bullhorns for the Democrat Party continue to insist that anyone who mentions voter fraud, as obvious as these facts are, is perpetrating the “big lie”.

The fake news mainstream media are the “big lie”. The more they try to B.S. the American public, the deeper the hole they dig for themselves. Dr. Shiva Ayyadurai, the man credited with email as we know it today, produced a live stream talking about these strange irregularities.

One key part of the four-hour discussion was about the more than 6,000 ballots that are mysteriously missing a corresponding image. Dr. Shiva insisted that these 6,545 ballots are a suspicious missing part of the report. No one is screaming about some crazed conspiracy.

All people are asking is an explanation of why these numbers do not match up. By not giving an answer at all, Maricopa County officials look even complicit in “the steal”, which they are. Liz Harrington is now the Chief Spokesperson for President Trump, beginning early in 2021. Harrington tweeted, “Why are there 6,545 more early voting ballots than the images?”

“That's a question.” She is not insinuating anything. She’s asking a logical question. Harrington just wants to know where these critical, election-changing ballots came from. Why can’t, or won’t, the officials from Maricopa County provide simple answers to a simple question

All they do is continue to hide behind their fake news accomplices to perpetrate the real “big lie”. Maricopa County officials have been exposed for deleting voter data ahead of an audit by Senators. Now they refuse to give answers to simple, straight-forward questions.

The liberal Democrats keep trying to label all questions about irregularities found during the 2020 Presidential election as “promoting the big lie”. It’s growing more and more undeniable what the “big lie” really is. The “big lie” is the 2020 Presidential Election. It was stolen, and with it one of the most cherished parts of democracy was snatched from every American citizen.

https://steadfastclash.com/the-latest/dr-shiva-ayyadurai-has-a-big-question-for-maricopa-county-officials-video/

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Biden Pick Becerra’s Indecent, Indefensible Legal Assault on Nuns, Human Life

Founded in France in 1839, the Little Sisters of the Poor is a Catholic order of nuns who operate 29 care homes across the United States. The nuns take vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and hospitality, and they serve Christ by serving the elderly poor.

When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka ACA or “Obamacare”) was enacted in March 2010, it required employers to offer health insurance plans that included contraceptives, abortifacients, and sterilizations—all of which violate the precepts of the Catholic Church.

Though the ACA exempted churches, it did not exempt faith-based ministries such as the Little Sisters of the Poor. These ministries were subject to fines if they did not comply—and the Little Sisters refused to comply.

St. Paul once wrote that all who will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. The Obama administration was determined to make good on that biblical promise and proceeded to persecute the Little Sisters all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 2016, the Supreme Court directed the Obama administration to compromise with the Little Sisters and “arrive at an approach going forward” to end the standoff. The Obama administration failed to achieve that goal before leaving office.

In 2017, the Trump administration took over and structured an accommodation that resolved the Little Sisters’ problems with the ACA mandate. In October of that year, the Department of Health and Human Services issued an updated religious-exemption rule that protected religious nonprofit organizations such as the Little Sisters of the Poor.

Case closed, right? Wrong.

The next month, November 2017, attorneys general from several states, including Pennsylvania and California, ramped up the persecution of the Little Sisters. They went to court and obtained a nationwide injunction against the new HHS rule. Pennsylvania and California sued the federal government, asking the judges to force the Little Sisters to comply with the Obamacare mandate or face millions of dollars in penalties.

At that point, the Little Sisters asked the U.S. Supreme Court for a definitive ruling.

On July 8, 2020, the Supreme Court delivered a decisive 7 to 2 ruling in favor of the Little Sisters of the Poor. The court affirmed the religious liberty exemptions for faith-based organizations. The Little Sisters of the Poor would not have to pay for abortions under the Obamacare mandates.

After spending over a decade fighting federal and state governments in the courts, the Little Sisters could finally get back to serving the poor in peace.

The Little Sisters set an example for us all, refusing to back down in the face of government pressure. They were determined to serve the elderly poor without lending support or endorsement to abortion. They correctly understood that the assault on their freedom was an assault on the sanctity of human life.

Is this really why government exists? To harass and intimidate nuns who are simply living out their faith and serving the poor? It’s hard to believe, but there are people in government who get up in the morning and say, “I’m going to punish a Catholic ministry today! I’m going to scare nuns and force them to pay for abortions!”

I mean, such a person would have to be a mustache-twirling villain of the Snidely Whiplash variety, right?

Well, meet one of the persecutors of the Little Sisters of the Poor—namely, President Joe Biden’s secretary of health and human services, Xavier Becerra. In November 2017, after the Little Sisters had already prevailed once in the Supreme Court, it was Becerra [then the state attorney general] who made the decision for California to sue again in federal court to take away the nuns’ religious exemption. He lost that case in 2020—but the following year, Biden tapped Becerra to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the very agency he had unsuccessfully sued in 2017.

In February, Becerra was in a Senate confirmation hearing for the Biden Cabinet post, trying to explain away his relentless pursuit of the Little Sisters of the Poor. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said to him, “It does seem like, as attorney general, you spent an inordinate amount of time and effort suing pro-life organizations, like Little Sisters of the Poor, or trying to ease restrictions or expand abortion.”

Apparently realizing how bad his pursuit of the Little Sisters looked, Becerra replied, “I have never sued the nuns, any nuns. I’ve never sued any affiliation of nuns, and my actions have always been directed at the federal agencies.”

It’s a flimsy alibi. Becerra did, in fact, sue to force a religious order of nuns to pay for Obamacare’s contraceptive and abortifacient mandates. Moreover, the case is named State of California v. Little Sisters of the Poor. It doesn’t get any plainer than that. Had Becerra won his case, the Little Sisters would have lost millions of dollars, along with their First Amendment rights. Becerra pursued the nuns in court for three years.

Despite his evasive testimony, Becerra did sue nuns, an act of cold-hearted villainy that would have done Snidely Whiplash proud. As Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., tweeted on Feb. 24, “Xavier Becerra is now claiming he didn’t sue nuns because he wants to get confirmed. But Becerra did sue nuns. He repeatedly harassed the Little Sisters of the Poor. That’s why he should be rejected by the Senate.”

In selecting Becerra to head HHS, Biden signaled his intention to move America to the extreme edge of pro-abortion policy. No American politician has ever demonstrated more enthusiasm for unrestricted abortion than Becerra.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/10/26/biden-pick-becerras-indecent-indefensible-legal-assault-on-nuns-human-life

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Why a South African cricketer refused to take a knee

South African cricket star Quinton de Kock pulled out of his side's eight-wicket Twenty20 World Cup win over the West Indies overnight.

The move was prompted by his opposition to an edict that the team was to kneel before the game in the widely understood and adopted gesture against racism.

Cricket South Africa announced the directive on Monday after the team was criticised for not having a uniform stance prior to the match on Saturday against Australia.

De Kock's move has drawn criticism, and despite the controversy the 28-year-old has received an offer of support from his captain.

But the saga is a reminder of sports' difficult history with racism in South Africa and beyond.

South Africa was up against the West Indies in its second match of the men's Twenty20 World Cup in the Middle East.

The Proteas lost their first game of the tournament to Australia, making the match against the defending champions from the Caribbean crucial.

But De Kock — wicketkeeper, star opening batsman and former captain — was not named in the team.

He had declined to take a knee in warm-up matches and his absence was initially explained as being for "personal reasons".

But shortly before the game, a statement from the country's cricket authority confirmed de Kock's opposition to the gesture was his motivation.

"Cricket South Africa (CSA) has noted the personal decision by South African wicket keeper Quinton de Kock not to 'take the knee' ahead of Tuesday's game against the West Indies," it read.

"All players had been required, in line with a directive of the CSA board on Monday evening, to 'take the knee' in a united and consistent stance against racism.

"After considering all relevant issues, including the freedom of choice of players, the Board had made it clear it was imperative for the team to be seen taking a stand against racism, especially given SA’s history.

"The Board’s view was that while diversity can and should find expression in many facets of daily lives, this did not apply when it came to taking a stand against racism."

South Africa ended up winning the match without de Kock, his replacement Reeza Hendricks hitting 39 off 30 balls as the side successfully chased down its target of 144.

South African cricket captain Temba Bavuma says he respects de Kock's decision.

"Quinton is an adult, he is a man in his own shoes, we respect his decision, we respect his convictions, and I know he'll be standing behind whatever decision he's taken."

The gesture of "taking a knee" grew from a protest against racial inequality in the USA by American football player Colin Kaepernick in 2016.

It has been adopted and accepted in the global sport community in the years since as a reminder of ongoing racial discrimination and a demand for improvement.

But some athletes have remained apathetic or resistant to the sentiment and have refused to take a knee, even as their teammates have.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-27/quinton-de-kock-taking-knee-racism-south-africa-t20-world-cup/100571494

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Illinois Supreme Court Rules Tax on Guns and Ammo is 'Unconstitutional'

In a huge win for the people on Tuesday, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that Cook County's tax on guns and ammo is unconstitutional.

In 2012, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved a $25 tax on the retail purchase of a firearm within the county. The county’s Firearm Tax Ordinance was enacted in April 2013.

A separate county tax was enacted in 2015, which added $0.05 per cartridge for centerfire ammunition and $0.01 per cartridge for rimfire ammunition. Americans who fail to pay those taxes are subject to a $1,000 fine for the first offense and a $2,000 fine for subsequent offenses.

Justice Mary Jane Theis ruled that the taxes “violate the state’s constitution because they affect law-abiding citizens’ Second Amendment right to acquire firearms for self-defense,” reasoning that “While the taxes do not directly burden a law-abiding citizen’s right to use a firearm for self-defense, they do directly burden a law-abiding citizen’s right to acquire a firearm and the necessary ammunition for self-defense.”

She also declared, “Under the plain language of the ordinances, the revenue generated from the firearm tax is not directed to any fund or program specifically related to curbing the cost of gun violence. Additionally, nothing in the ordinance indicates that the proceeds generated from the ammunition tax must be specifically directed to initiatives aimed at reducing gun violence.”

https://dailypatriotreport.com/illinois-supreme-court-rules-tax-on-guns-and-ammo-is-unconstitutional/

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My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

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Junked food! Toxic compounds used to make industrial tubing and rubber gloves are found in 80% of McDonald's, Burger King and Pizza Hut food: Dangerous chemicals are linked to asthma, infertility and smaller testicles, study finds

Not the old phthalates scare again! This has been thoroughly debunked. The fact is that phthalates have all sorts of bad effects when fed in high doses to rats but have NO ill-effects in humans. See here for details

It's not just the cholesterol, calories and carbohydrates in fast food that people have to worry about: burgers, pizza and burritos are crawling with toxic 'forever chemicals,' according to a new study.

Researchers at George Washington University ordered dozens of items from McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Domino's, Taco Bell and Chipotle.

According to their analysis, they found phthalates, which are used to make plastic pliable, in over 80 percent of the samples.

Phthalates are also known as plasticizers, and are used in hundreds of products, from vinyl flooring and plastic packaging to soaps and shampoos.

In addition, they have been linked to numerous health problems, including cancer, liver damage, infertility, thyroid disease, asthma and even smaller testicles, as well as learning disabilities, behavioral issues and attention-deficit disorders in children.

People are exposed to phthalates by ingesting foods and beverages that have contacted products containing phthalates or by breathing phthalate particles in the air directly, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Exposure is a particular risk for kids, the health agency said, because children crawl around touching things and put them in their mouths.

The researchers chose the restaurants and menu items — hamburgers, fries, chicken nuggets, chicken burritos and cheese pizza — based on market share and best-selling items.

Items made with meat had higher levels of phthalates, while French fries and cheese pizza had the lowest, according to their findings, published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.

Of the food they ordered, 81 percent contained a phthalate called DnBP, which has been linked to a heightened risk for asthma, and 70 percent contained DEHP, which has been tied to reduced fertility and other reproductive issues.

As concern over phthalates grows, alternative plasticizers have been developed, and the scientists found one such substitute, called DEHT, in 86 percent of the junk food.

The full health impact of these alternative plasticizers are not yet known, the researchers said.

The burgers, McNuggets and milkshakes could have come into contact with phthalates and replacement plasticizers anywhere along the food-supply chain, the researchers said, from processing and packaging equipment to the plastic gloves worn by employees.

The FDA doesn't set limits for phthalates in food, according to the Post, but the levels detected in the 64 fast-food items purchased from franchises around San Antonio, Texas, were all below the EPA's current acceptable thresholds.

Still, the FDA told the Post that it would review the George Washington study and consider its findings.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10136675/Chemicals-used-make-plastics-soft-McDonalds-Chipotle-Pizza-Hut-food.html

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Two thirds of French people believe white Christians are 'threatened with extinction' by Muslim migration, new poll shows

Two thirds of French people think white, European, Christian populations are being 'threatened with extinction' by immigration from Muslim and African countries.

Sixty per cent of French people said such a scenario will 'definitely' or 'probably' play out in the country when asked by pollsters, who published the results last week.

The question was posed ahead of next year's election, where Emmanuel Macron is almost certain to face off against one of two right-wing candidates: Marine Le Pen or Eric Zemmour.

Central to Zemmour's ideology is the idea of 'The Great Replacement', a theory put forward by Renaud Camus that argues Christian civilisation is being intentionally replaced using Muslim immigration from Africa in a plot by global capitalists.

The poll, carried out by Harris Interactive, aimed to test whether or not voters believe in the concept - despite it being widely panned by experts.

The question voters were asked, based on Camus's definition, was: 'Some people speak of the "great replacement": That European, white and Christian populations are being threatened with extinction following Muslim immigration, coming from the Maghreb [northern Africa] and black Africa. Do you see such a phenomenon?'

It found that 61 per cent of French people believe the phenomenon could happen in France, with 27 per cent saying they are 'certain' it will take place. Just 39 per cent of people said it 'probably' or 'definitely' won't happen.

Of those who said it 'definitely' or 'probably' will happen, support for the idea was roughly evenly split across all age groups and across genders.

However, it varied widely depending on political affiliation. More than 90 per cent of supporters of Le Pen's RN party believed it was a likely scenario, while just 30 per cent of Green said the same. Perhaps worryingly for Macron, 52 per cent of his own party's supporters believed it was a likely scenario.

A follow-up question asked whether French people were 'worried' or 'not worried' about the idea of a 'Great Replacement'. This found even more people - 67 per cent - were worried about the idea, compared to just 33 per cent who were not.

Polls have suggested for years that Marine Le Pen will be the one to take on Emmanuel Macron for the French presidency, but Zemmour could now best her

The issue of migration and its impact on French identity is set to become a key theme of the upcoming election, as Zemmour - who has yet to declare his candidacy - threatens to usurp Le Pen for the chance to take on Macron.

Zemmour - a notorious figure in France for his anti-Islam and anti-migration views that he espouses in essays and on his TV new show - is now polling higher than Le Pen in some opinion polls ahead of voting in April next year.

Le Pen appears to be leaking support to Zemmour as she tries to move herself towards the centre-ground in an attempt to paint herself as a serious candidate - having lost out to Macron during the second round of voting last time

By contrast, Zemmour sits openly on the far-right - declaring that suburbs of Paris are being 'colonised' by Muslim migrants with large families that he says will make up the majority of the population by the middle of the century.

Statisticians say this argument is deeply flawed, but polls show that his arguments are cutting through with voters.

He also has two convictions for hate speech, including stating during a broadcast that that France is being 'invaded' by Muslims and must give them an ultimatum: 'Choose between Islam and France.'

France's swing to the political right comes after a string of terror attacks that has seen voters demand politicians take a tougher stance on extremism.

Teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded at a school near Paris last year after showing students a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed to students, just weeks before a second attack in Nice cathedral killed three.

In the wake of Paty's murder, Macron took a noticeably harder line on Islamic extremism - declaring that France would 'neve give up' expressing free speech including drawing Mohammed pictures.

That prompted mass demonstrations in many Muslim-majority nations, led by Turkey's President Erdogan who denounced the comments.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10135503/Two-thirds-French-believe-Muslim-migration-threat.html

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Chile far-right candidate rides anti-migrant wave in presidential poll

Hopes for a more progressive Chile have been dealt a blow as a far-right candidate surges in opinion polls ahead of the first presidential election since massive demonstrations against inequality erupted in 2019.

A month before the vote, polling shows that the leftwing candidate – former student leader Gabriel Boric – has slipped behind (by one percentage point) José Antonio Kast, a supporter of the dictator Augusto Pinochet, who has suggested digging ditches along the country’s border to stop migrants.

After months of political unrest, voters chose by huge majority to replace the country’s Pinochet-era constitution, and then elected a broadly leftwing convention to complete that task.

But fears over migration, public security and shifting social values have boosted the far right, making the 21 November election a battle between starkly contrasting visions for Chile’s future.

The country has been on edge since September, when anti-migrant violence exploded in Iquique, a port on Chile’s arid northern coast.

After police cleared a camp of homeless Venezuelan families, a xenophobic march culminated with jeering, flag-waving crowds tossing migrants’ belongings on to a bonfire – including children’s toys, nappies and a pram.

“The far right have managed to weaponise migration in the run-up to the election,” says Romina Ramos, a sociologist at Arturo Prat University in Iquique.

“They are playing on fears of a threat to security and Chilean identity – and Kast has been able to present the arrivals as an invasion which must be fought off.”

But other elements are in the mix too: at subsequent demonstrations in Iquique, anti-vaccination banners were brandished alongside others rejecting globalization and the United Nations.

According to government statistics, the number of foreign-born citizens living in Chile more than tripled, to 1.5 million, between 2014 and the end of 2019, while migrants – many fleeing violence and poverty in Haiti and Venezuela – continue to arrive in the country.

Kast’s rise in the polls coincided with the Iquique marches, and he was quick to capitalise on the underlying sentiments with a Trump-like series of provocations.

In a visit to Colchane, a tiny town on the Bolivian border which has become a popular crossing point for migrants, Kast highlighted violence perpetrated by migrants.

He has also proposed creating a body within the investigative police force in the image of the US’s much-criticised Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) to “actively seek out illegal migrants”.

“Fundamentally, Kast defends free markets and traditional values, and favours the image of a monocultural Chile of European descent,” says Gilberto Aranda, an academic at the University of Chile who studies rightwing movements.

“His advance in the polls is a reaction to the simplistic narrative that everything that has happened over the last 30 years has been negative.”

Although he is likened to Jair Bolsonaro, Kast’s similarly vitriolic message is delivered with a more understated tone than that of the Brazilian president.

His programme focuses on conservative family values, moves against corruption and the strengthening of public security. He makes a point of criticising political correctness, inclusive language, identity politics and the perceived “abandonment” of Chilean traditions.

Analysts say that Kast draws support from a continuum of voters reaching to the peripheries of Chile’s far right.

Before the October 2020 referendum on rewriting the constitution, small marches in Santiago’s wealthiest neighbourhoods were adorned with US Confederate flags and “Make Chile Great Again” paraphernalia – as well as a handful of baton-wielding demonstrators clad in military helmets.

The government has been reluctant to condemn other worrying developments. In November last year, the undersecretary in the interior ministry described a cache of weaponry – including an Uzi submachine gun, body armour and Crusader-style shields – amassed by a far-right group as “unimportant utensils”.

Kast, meanwhile, has been positioning himself carefully as a radical alternative to Chile’s traditionally powerful rightwing parties.

In the lead-up to the 2017 election, in which he won nearly 8% of the vote as an independent candidate, he claimed that if Pinochet were alive, the former dictator would have voted for him.

The Pinochet dictatorship seized power in a bloody coup d’état in 1973 and left behind more than 40,000 recorded victims when it relinquished power in 1990 – as well as the neoliberal economic model protesters have rejected.

Some in Chile, including several prominent members of the government, continue to support the economic legacy of the regime. “Although Kast doesn’t openly espouse the dictatorship any more like some of his supporters, his programme embodies the elements that some believe made it a success,” explains Aranda.

In April this year, a candidate for councillor representing Kast’s party in Santiago openly stated her support for Pinochet, using the former dictator’s image in a photoshopped montage alongside the former UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher. Another of the party’s candidates in the coastal city of Viña del Mar used a similar tactic.

Neither was elected.

But a battle for Chile’s identity is afoot, and the debate over national symbols, the place of indigenous peoples and migrants in society, and the legacy of the Pinochet regime is reflected in the contrasting frontrunners.

“This is the most fluid election since the return to democracy,” said Cristóbal Bellolio, a political scientist at Adolfo Ibáñez University in Santiago.

“Chile’s identity is at stake amid one of the most turbulent periods in recent history – and we are set to find out just how much has changed.”

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/chile-far-right-candidate-rides-anti-migrant-wave-in-presidential-poll/ar-AAPMwOJ

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Conservative senator claims credit for Australia's planned voter ID laws

One Nation leader, Pauline Hanson, has claimed credit for the Coalition’s voter integrity bill, saying she made voter identification a condition for her support on another electoral bill.

Hanson told Guardian Australia on Thursday she had “had a gutful” of the Morrison government taking credit for her ideas and the voter ID bill “wouldn’t be happening without me”.

The comments come as the Centre Alliance party offered the Coalition a pathway to pass the controversial laws, with Senator Stirling Griff saying he is “generally supportive” of an ID requirement.

Griff told Guardian Australia that although his party hasn’t decided its position, he “understands the need for ID” but may seek some accommodation for Indigenous Australians and other groups for whom the bill could impose a hurdle to voting.

The voter integrity bill, which passed the Coalition party room on Tuesday, was introduced in the House of Representatives on Thursday.

It prompted fury from Labor leader, Anthony Albanese, who unsuccessfully moved a suspension of standing orders for a motion accusing the government of seeking to “undermine our strong democracy and deny Australians their basic democratic rights”.

Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra on Thursday voter ID was “not an earth-shattering proposal” and is “standard practice in liberal democracies” around the world.

He noted the electoral committee had recommended it after the 2013, 2016 and 2019 elections. Morrison claimed “not one vote will be lost” due to the ability to cast a declaration vote.

Voter ID laws have been on the Coalition wishlist for the last three terms of parliament, but the government did not introduce a bill to give effect to the recommendation from the joint standing committee on electoral matters (Jscem). Hanson said they had been “bloody lazy”.

The Australian electoral commissioner, Tom Rogers, has said the evidence of multiple voting is “vanishingly small”.

After defeating a Labor motion to delay debate until 2023, the government will have two weeks to pass the proposal in the November sitting period before an election is expected to be called in early 2022.

Labor and the Greens have accused the Coalition of seeking to import US-style voter suppression.

Under the proposed voter integrity bill, a voter unable to produce ID can still vote if their identity can be verified by another voter, or by casting a declaration vote, which requires further details such as date of birth and a signature.

Given One Nation’s support for the laws, the government will need one vote out of the remaining crossbench senators – Griff, Rex Patrick and Jacqui Lambie – to pass the bill.

Griff told Guardian Australia his party had received the bill but is yet to be briefed by Morton or decide its position. “I’m generally supportive of having ID … I understand the need for ID,” he said.

Griff noted Rogers evidence about the rarity of multiple voting but said one “has to wonder” if the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is detecting all instances of electoral fraud.

Griff cited his personal knowledge of one elderly person with dementia who “voted five times in a row” and received a “please explain” letter but no further action was taken.

He acknowledged that disfranchisement of Indigenous people was a “key issue” for those expressing concern about the bill, suggesting that there “might be issues we need to deal with for certain groups” to ensure a “positive solution for everyone”.

On Tuesday evening the finance minister, Simon Birmingham, defended the government’s proposal as a means to “further enhance integrity” and public confidence.

Birmingham told Senate estimates the bill would help eliminate “actual areas of risk and perceived areas of risk” such as multiple voting or fraudulent voting in the name of deceased people.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/pauline-hanson-claims-credit-for-coalition-s-controversial-voter-id-laws/ar-AAQ1JOB

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My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

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Federal Attorney General debunks Democrat insurrection claims about capitol riot

Hundreds of patriotic Americans showed up at the Capitol on January 6, 2020. The vast majority were there to exercise their constitutional God-given right to free speech. They were protesting what they believed to be a bogus and fraudulent presidential election.

Right or wrong in their viewpoint, many were swept up in the chaotic events created by a handful of individuals. Ever since Americans were forcibly removed from the “People’s House”, liberal Democrats have bludgeoned them slanderous names.

The one narrative that has caused the most controversy is the Democrat Party’s ignorant inclination to call them insurrectionists. They refer to the protest that led to the woefully unprepared Capitol Police being overrun by protestors as “the insurrection”.

But while testifying on Capitol Hill, the current Attorney for the United States of America, Merrick Garland, could not identify a single jailed person as being charged with insurrection. These people have been locked away since their arrest dates nearly a year ago.

The man in charge of approving federal charges of insurrection said, “I don’t believe so”, when asked if any of these so-called insurrectionists have been formally charged with insurrection. The strange vagueness of the AG’s answer is a topic for a whole different discussion.

But even so, the Democrat Party and their complicit gang of crooks in the fake news mainstream media continue to spin the “insurrection” narrative. Where are the charges of insurrection?

Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert finds this to be rather perplexing. Every radical liberal, including the deep state Department of Justice, continues to spout accusations of an insurrection. Republicans just want to know the names of the insurrectionists charged.

But over 10 months later, not a single solitary person has been charged with this federal crime. There isn’t even any evidence of an FBI investigation ahead of laying the groundwork for a charge of insurrection.

Insurrection is a specific crime. The legal language to be charged with insurrection is very definitive. United States 18 - Code 2383 says spells out what must happen to warrant charges for insurrection.

“Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”

Joe Biden talks tough, but rarely backs up his bravado. Most remember his bogus claim that he’d meet then presidential candidate Donald Trump behind the bar, and “beat the hell out of him”.

Joe Biden is now and always has been a blowhard. His cowardice is displayed fully by his own Department of Justice. Democrats and deep state operatives continue to call January 6, 2020 “the insurrection”.

However, no one at the DOJ has the courage to make formal charges of insurrection. Since legal experts appreciate how prosecutors caution against filing charges they cannot win, maybe there’s something more to this mystery. Biden’s DOJ may be smarter than we think.

They can continue to damage the good name of former President Donald Trump while they investigate a bogus insurrection. All the while, they know full well that no one involved in the January 6 protest will ever be charged with insurrection. They won’t because there never was an insurrection.

What happened on January 6, 2020, was an unfortunate materialization of misguided, angry protestors. The ineptitude of the Capitol Police is as much to blame as those individuals who were present. There have been zero charges leveled for insurrection, because there wasn’t one.

https://steadfastclash.com/the-latest/garland-debunks-democrat-insurrection-claims-about-capitol-riot/

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Putin Slams U.S. for Deleting Its History, Calls Transgenderism a 'Crime Against Humanity'

Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a speech this week calling out the United States and other western nations for their progressive ideology, particularly drawing attention to the issue of gender identity.

Putin said during his Thursday speech at the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi that Russia should hold onto its "spiritual values and historical traditions." He added that "sociocultural disturbances" could be detrimental to the country.

Western nations in Europe and the United States, Putin warned, have allowed "the aggressive deletion of whole pages of their own history, reverse discrimination against the majority in the interests of minorities … constitute movement toward public renewal."

"It’s their right, but we are asking them to steer clear of our home," he continued. "We have a different viewpoint."

Putin also discussed how liberals in the West want to eliminate what he called "traditional interpretation of such basic values," which include designations such as "mother, father, family, and the distinction between sexes."

"The proponents of new approaches go so far as they want to eliminate the whole notions of men and women, and those who dare say that men and women exist and this is a biological fact, they are all but banished," he said. "Parent number one, parent number two, or the parent that has given birth, or instead of breast milk, you say human milk. And you say all of that, so the people who are not sure of their sexual agenda are not unhappy."

In an apparent knock against youth transgenderism, the Russian dictator said that children being taught that a "boy can become a girl" and vice versa is on "the verge of a crime against humanity."

"There are some monstrous things when from a very young age, you teach to children that the boy can easily become a girl and you impose on them this selection, this choice," Putin said. "You push the parents aside and make the child take these decisions that can destroy their lives."

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/landonmion/2021/10/23/putin-slams-us-for-deleting-its-history-calls-transgenderism-a-crime-against-humanity-n2597918

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Documents show the real number of illegal migrants Biden let into the U.S.

At least 160,000 illegal immigrants have been released by the Biden administration since March – along with a broad use of limited parole authorities to allow 30,000 to be eligible for work permits since August, Border Patrol documents show.

The documents give a glimpse into how the Biden administration has been releasing massive numbers of migrants into the U.S., often with little to no oversight, supervision, or imminent threat of deportation.

Since March 20, no less than 94,570 illegal immigrants have been released into the U.S. with Notices to Report. Individuals who receive a Notice to Report are instructed to check in with an ICE office when they arrive at their final destination – which could be anywhere in the country. Individuals who check-in are not deported or detained as their immigration proceedings move forward.

Since Aug 6th, the administration has released an estimated 32,000 immigrants into the U.S. by parole – which grants migrants a degree of legal status and the ability to apply for work permits.

Federal law says parole authority is meant to be used on a case-by-case basis for "urgent humanitarian purposes" and "significant public benefit." Generally, only a few parole cases are granted by officials, however, the Biden administration has been using it liberally, for example, its parole of tens of thousands of Afghans into the United States as part of Operation Allies Welcome.

Former Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott, who served under President Biden, examined the documents and said that he believes the administration is abusing its parole authority, according to Fox News.

"By law and regulation, a parole shall only be granted on a case by case basis and only for significant humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. Neither of these appear to apply to the current situation," he said, adding that the number of paroles brings into question the review and approval process.

"As a field chief, I don’t believe I ever approved more than 5 or 10 paroles in a year," he said. "When I did, I ensured that the alien was monitored continuously and was detained or removed as soon as the circumstances allowed."

The documents reveal that since Aug 6, the administration released an additional 40,000 illegal immigrants on their own recognizance. The documents also show that on one single day in the Del Rio sector, 128 single adult illegal immigrants were released into the U.S. without ATD – which usually entails tracking by an ankle monitor or phone.

A Customs and Border Protection (CBP) official said that mechanisms like paroling, the use of NTRs, and enrolling migrants in Alternatives to Detention (ATD) "provides mechanisms to require family units released from CBP custody to report to ICE within a specified time."

The official also cited data that shows that between 2014 and 2020, 81% of migrants released into the U.S. did report for their immigration proceedings.

The agency has not yet released the number of migrant encounters in September, however, in both July and August there were more than 200,000 migrant encounters, some of the highest numbers in twenty years. Since then, migrants have continued to come in droves. According to the documents, Rio Grande Valley encountered 5,900 migrants in one week, while Del Rio encountered more than 2,900 in that same week.

https://dfctoday.com/documents-show-the-real-number-of-illegal-migrants-biden-let-into-the-u-s/

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The Reason for ‘Right Flight’

Dinesh D’Souza

There’s a great migration underway to red America from blue America, to Republican-controlled states such as Texas and Florida from Democratic-controlled states such as New York and California. I should know. I lived from 2000 to 2017 in Southern California, before leaving the state for Texas, where I live now.

I’m part of a larger movement that we could call “right flight,” the flight to right-leaning states from left-leaning ones.

Sure, I moved partly because I married a Texan, or perhaps I should say a Venezuelan who has spent her entire adult life in Texas. But she could have come my way to San Diego; instead, I chose to go her way to the Houston area. Many factors were involved, but let’s just say, I don’t mind my state income tax rate going to zero from around 10 percent.

My film company is still based in California, at least for now, and we have two members of our small team who still live there. Interestingly, one is in the process of moving his family to Florida, and I just heard the other guy has been checking out real estate in the Southwest. He says he’s “just looking,” but just looking is often the gateway to relocating. I predict that he’ll be calling a moving company soon.

Now, one explanation of what’s going on is that Americans are self-segregating as part of a great divide that has opened up between Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals. I’m tempted to say that we’re moving toward the sort of ideological chasm that defined the period leading up to the Civil War. But then, I realize that, in many respects, America today is more divided than it was in 1860.

In 1860, only one issue divided America: the issue of slavery. This is a point made by Abraham Lincoln, on the eve of the Civil War, writing to his former Whig colleague Alexander Stephens, who became the vice president of the Confederacy. Essentially, Lincoln said that the secessionists believed slavery to be right, and wanted to see it expand, while the unionists believed slavery to be wrong, and wanted to see it contract. But this, Lincoln emphasized, was the only major difference between the two camps.

Today, by contrast, there’s so much that divides conservative Republicans from left-wing Democrats that it’s hard to think of a single issue that they agree on. Moreover, the two sides don’t even like each other very much. Each seeks to demonize the other, to get away from the other. Moreover, Democrats seem unwilling to live and let live; they seem intent on forcing their values on the rest of the country, through ideological indoctrination in schools, through imposed federal mandates, and through censorship enforced across digital platforms.

This process of ideological separation—let’s call it a secession within America—has been occurring for a couple of decades now. Initially, people sorted themselves within states, and so there were “red” pockets such as Orange County and the Central Valley in blue California, just as there are “blue” pockets such as Austin and the Rio Grande Valley in red Texas.

But now, people are actually leaving blue America to relocate to red America. Since this is a one-way trend—we don’t see Texans rushing to California, or Floridians heading up to New York—it can’t be interpreted simply as a process of ideological self-segregation. Something more must be going on, and that something seems to be that the red states are more appealing places to live than the blue states.

It’s sometimes said that “immigration is a form of flattery.” This applies, of course, to people coming to America. There must be something more attractive about America than their home countries. But the same principle applies to people who move from one place to another within America. There must be something more attractive to them about their new destinations than the places that they are leaving.

Consider Texas and California, which, at first glance, are quite similar in a number of respects. Both are large states, in terms of physical size and population. Both have substantial Hispanic populations. Historically, both were independent republics, even if for a brief time. Both were relatively unaffected by the Civil War, even though Texas, unlike California, was part of the Confederacy. Today, both have large industries such as agriculture, energy, biotech, and high-tech.

What differentiates the two states is just two things. California is a much more beautiful state and has, on the whole, much better weather. This should give California a natural advantage over Texas. Call it the sunshine plus. Texas, however, has conservative policies in both the economic and cultural realms. This seems to overcome the California advantage, since the movement is to Texas from California and not so much the other way.

Earlier, I mentioned state income taxes: Texas has none. Texas also has cheaper land values, so you can get more for your money when you buy a house. Everything from groceries to gas is markedly cheaper in Texas, which means that the family paycheck goes further. Texas is also a better-run state, which you can test by going to a DMV in California versus one in Texas. In California, you have to take the day off work because you could be there for hours; in Texas, you’re usually out with whatever you needed to get done within 30 minutes.

In La Jolla, California, I had a view of the ocean that I can’t replicate in Texas. But in Texas, I have a nice little mansion with a pool and waterfall in the backyard that reminds me of Hawaii. I don’t really miss the Pacific Ocean. It’s not just the economic benefits. Texans still have the spirit of the Alamo, the spirit of freedom, which gives daily life itself a more charged, vibrant quality.

California, by contrast, cultivates in its inhabitants today the spirit of dependency, the spirit of the leech and the parasite. California once had its own dream, the California dream, which was basically the California version of the American dream.

But increasingly, people living in blue America see their American dream passing away, and so they flee to red America, where they can live better and once again dream big dreams for themselves and their children.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_morningbrief/the-reason-for-right-flight_4061901.html

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My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

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