Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Posted on 14 October 2018 by eehines

The tentacles reach far—even into the origin of Western concepts of individual liberty. A British court has ordered

the wife of a jailed Azerbaijani banker to explain how she and her husband could afford their multimillion-pound London mansion or face having it seized.

Government does not have to prove the illegal origin of the money. No, the holder of the money must prove her innocence. Here is the outcome of the British government’s legislation ostensibly aimed at allegedly dirty money held by people with political connections or suspected of serious crime.

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The New Left

Posted on 12 October 2018 by eehines

There can be no reasoning, no rational debate anymore with the Progressive-Democratic Party and the Left in general. This is made clear by the statements luminaries of that collection have made in recent days—confirming their behavior during the Kavanaugh confirmation process just concluded, during which they actively rejected a foundation of liberty: innocent until proven guilty. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D, NY) was the loudest on this, saying outright that then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh had to personally authorize an investigation into himself or he would show himself guilty.

This is a preview of The New Left. Read the full post (438 words, estimated 1:45 mins reading time)

Consider a Possibility

Posted on 11 October 2018 by eehines

Our ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, will resign her position at the end of the year. She told President Donald Trump her intention six months ago.

That raises a couple of thoughts in my pea brain. One is to watch the utter vitriol, hatred, and character assassination with which the Progressive-Democrats will try to block any Trump replacement nominee from confirmation.

Beyond that: Nikki Haley for President in ’24. Consider further: Lindsey Graham for VP (unless we still need the Republican numbers in the Senate to protect the Supreme Court). (If Graham proves unavailable, how about Congresswoman Mia Love (R, UT)? It’d be fun to watch the Party of Identity Politics campaign against that ticket.)

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Partisanship

Posted on 10 October 2018 by eehines

Chris Wallace interviewed Senator Ben Cardin (D, MD) on his Fox News Sunday program last Sunday.

Here are some of the claims Cardin made.

The change that Senator McConnell made to the rules on the Supreme Court really caused us to be much more partisan in this[.]

And

I don’t believe that Justice Kavanaugh’s in the mainstream of judicial thought.

And

Kavanaugh’s confirmation puts at risk “the progress we’ve made on health care issues, on women’s Constitutional rights, and on protecting the Mueller investigation.”

Not quite, although this is America, and Cardin is entitled [sic] to his spin.

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The Supreme Court

Posted on 8 October 2018 by eehines

As I write this (Saturday morning), Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh has not been confirmed; although, that seems more likely than I had thought Friday morning before the cloture vote. Nevertheless, here’s why we need another textualist Justice on the Court—from the words of another Supreme Court Justice.

Associate Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan said Friday she fears the high court may lack a justice going forward who would serve as a swing-vote on cases….

And

Kagan said at a conference for women at Princeton University that over the past three decades…there was a figure on the bench “who found the center or people couldn’t predict in that sort of way.”

This is a preview of The Supreme Court. Read the full post (384 words, estimated 1:32 mins reading time)

Another Witness Demurs

Posted on 24 September 2018 by eehines

In an email to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Saturday, Leland Ingham Keyser, a former classmate of Ford’s at the Holton-Arms all-girls school in Maryland, said she doesn’t know Kavanaugh or remember being at the party with him.
“Simply put, Ms Keyser does not know Mr [sic] Kavanaugh and she has no recollection of ever being at a party or gathering where he was present, with, or without, Dr Ford,” lawyer Howard J Walsh III of Bethesda, MD, conveyed in an email to the committee that was obtained by Fox News [and by Politico].

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Promise

Posted on 22 September 2018 by eehines

The People’s Republic of China has been rolling out its system for spying on surveilling its citizens for a while now. This is the system that develops social scores for every PRC citizen, and the system has bennies for achieving high scores:

…waived deposits on hotels and rental cars, VIP treatment at airports, discounted loans, priority job applications, and fast-tracking to the most prestigious universities.

Things that can detract from those high scores include

[j]aywalking, late payments on bills or taxes, buying too much alcohol, or speaking out against the government….
Other mooted punishable offences include spending too long playing video games, wasting money on frivolous purchases, and posting on social media….

This is a preview of Promise. Read the full post (212 words, estimated 51 secs reading time)

Whose Side?

Posted on 18 September 2018 by eehines

On whose side is the current Pope? What is his purpose, his goal?

First, the Pope condones covering up—even delaying a “conference” for chit-chat about the abuse for as long as possible—massive child abuse by Catholicism’s priests and bishops.

Now we have the Pope saying the Catholic Church—the Vatican—doesn’t even need to be the authority that selects the Church’s bishops.

…Catholic concession in a far-reaching deal between Rome and the Vatican announced Friday. The Vatican has agreed to recognize as legitimate seven Chinese priests who had been excommunicated by Rome for accepting their bishop hats without Vatican approval. Two bishops who had remained faithful to Rome will retire to make room for bishops more to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s liking.

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Mao and Xi

Posted on 17 September 2018 by eehines

Deutsche Welle reported on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s visit last Friday with People’s Republic of China President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang in the PRC. A couple of things jumped out at me that are separate from the emphasis the article put on the visit and the aid the PRC has promised Maduro. Maduro tweeted

We began our state visit to the People’s Republic of China, paying tribute to its founder, the Great Helmsman, Mao Tse Tung. His example and revolutionary struggle marked the twentieth century.

That was in connection with this:

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Government Diktat

Posted on 12 September 2018 by eehines

California style. That state has passed a law.

The law requires a company to appoint one woman to its board of directors by the end of 2019. By the end of 2021 a five-member board would need to have two women, while boards with six or more directors would need three. The Legislature, always alert to possible micro-aggressions, defines female as “an individual who self-identifies her gender as a woman, without regard to the individual’s designated sex at birth.”

(One wonders whether the law would be satisfied by a male Board member self-identifying as a woman for the purpose of Board-related activities. [/snark])

This is a preview of Government Diktat. Read the full post (342 words, estimated 1:22 mins reading time)

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