It’s Wednesday, March 2nd, 2022…but before beginning, allow us a brief stroll down Memory Lane in which we recall not only The Obamao ridiculing Romney’s prescient warning (Hey, even a broken clock is right twice a day!) about the nature of Mad Vlad…
…but his critical role in creating the menace Putin poses today…
…a threat his feckless former #2 has only served to exponentially increase:
Come to think of it, #2 describes Joe Biden to a T. And no, we will not even attempt to endure what will most assuredly be an uninterrupted cavalcade of lies and misinformation…
…purported to represent the state of our union. (Hat tip to James Patrick for the 46* clip, and Balls for the Bingo card.)
Now, here’s The Gouge!
Since we’re on the subject of what brought us to where we are today, in an absolute must-read forward from G. Trevor, the great Victor Davis Hanson takes us down…
“One of the oddest commentaries about the Russian invasion of Ukraine is the boilerplate reaction that “borders can’t change in modern Europe” or “this does not happen in the 21st century.”
But why in the world should the 21st century be exempt from the pathologies of the past 20 centuries? Are we smarter than the Romans? More innovative than Florentines? Do we have more savvy leaders than Lincoln or Churchill? Are they more mellifluous than Demosthenes? Does anyone now remember that some 130,000 were slaughtered just 30 years ago in the former Yugoslavia, as NATO planes bombed Belgrade and nuclear America and Russia almost squared off?
Has globalization, the “rules-based order,” the Davos reset elite, the “international community” so improved the very way humans think that they have rendered obsolete the now ossified ancient idea of deterrence? Will the Kardashians and Beyoncé tweet our pathway to global peace?
How about transnational NGOs? NATO? WHO? The UN? Are all their recent records of service proof of our more exalted modern morality? Will some new engineered Wuhan virus alter human nature, end its innate ancient pathologies, and so eliminate war as we knew it? Are we not the League of Nations because Putin is now chair of the Security Council?
In truth, anything can happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time—and has and will until the end of time.
So let us walk down the crowded road to Kiev…”
And lest it be forgotten, on more than one occasion, Trump’s been part of the caravan, and stillhasn’t learned from his mistakes. As another Donald so often quoted, “There are none so blind as those that WILL not see!”, and we count Trump among their company.
In a related item courtesy of Fielding Cocke, USA Today‘s David Rothkopf offers one to-be-wished-for outcome of Russia’s unprovoked invasion:
“The story of Ukraine’s heroic struggle against the brutality of Vladimir Putin and the Russian military has captivated the world’s attention because it contains within it elements of almost every story we tell in an effort to make sense of this world.
Good vs. evil. Courage vs. cruelty. David vs. Goliath. Truth vs. lies. Order vs. anarchy. The past vs. the present.
It is also compelling because at every turn so far it has confounded conventional wisdom and undone the assumptions of both the powerful and pundits.
Many, including Putin, wrongly assumed the West would not come together to stand up to his threats. As he did, they predicted that the United States, in retreat since the catastrophe of Iraq and bitterly divided politically, would be too weak to effectively assume the role of leader. As he did, they anticipated that Ukraine would be unable to resist the onslaught of Putin’s massive, vaunted armed forces.
…The war could rage on, of course. Putin could continue to be irrational. He could continue to rattle that nuclear saber. But, because nuclear threats only underscore how dangerous Putin is, Western pressure on him is likely to grow stronger.
On Sunday, Germany announced a commitment to increase defense spending to more than 2% of gross domestic product a year. Germany, like other Western nations, are sending more weapons to Ukraine. New sanctions – blocking many Russian financial institutions from the use of the SWIFT global financial clearing system, isolating the Russian central bank – have real teeth and could devastate the already weak Russian economy. More will follow.
For Russia, now, the only question is what sort of defeat they are willing to negotiate. Can Putin keep Crimea? He should not be allowed to. Can the Russians get a deal by which Ukraine renounces any desire to enter NATO? Possibly a short-term one. But that too, frankly, should be off the table.
Indeed, it is unlikely that once the war is over the pain for Putin will stop. He will never again be anything but a pariah. If he is prosecuted for war crimes and wants to avoid jail, he may never again be able to leave Russia.
The damage he has done to Russia’s standing and economy will endure long after this conflict is done. And of course, for him, the worst case scenario now possible is that the war he has waged to force regime change may result in it happening in Moscow rather than Kyiv.
Putin’s only hope is that the West and Ukraine lose their nerve and make the mistakes they have failed to make so far. But that seems unlikely given the way the past few weeks have unfolded.
And it is for that reason that at this moment, if Ukraine and the West maintain their resolve, it is not entirely irrational to think that at least in this one case, good may defeat evil, courage may triumph over cruelty, David may once again beat Goliath, truth will undo lies, order may prevail over anarchy and the world of the past may have to give way to the one of the future.“
To borrow a phrase from Theodoric of York, Medieval Barber…
Seriously, it sounds great, and, along with Charlie Cooke, it’s what we hope and pray comes to pass. And though could be wrong…after all…
…we wouldn’t bet the farm, or the Kremlin, it’ll be Mad Vlad on the menu.
Next, we continue our coverage of the COVID scam with an item from Frontpage Magazine courtesy of Jeff Foutch, in which Stephen Moore correctly concludes…
“What if two years ago, when COVID-19 first hit these shores, our politicians hadn’t panicked?
What if the government did what it has done every time we were confronted with a deadly virus, such as the Spanish flu or polio? Instead of locking down our schools, churches and businesses, the government could have simply informed citizens of the risks of getting sick and urged people to be extra careful about hygiene, stay out of crowded places and protect the vulnerable.
It turns out there was one country that mostly rejected lockdowns and let life go on as normal as possible under dire circumstances. That country was Sweden.
There were some restrictions and temporary lockdowns, but they were minimal.
The hero of this story is Anders Tegnell, Sweden’s chief epidemiologist. He was Sweden’s Anthony Fauci, but unlike the now-widely discredited Fauci, Tegnell eschewed lockdowns. The international media pilloried him for not following “the science.” At first, it seemed the Swedish live-and-let-live strategy was a miserable failure. Death rates soared higher than in other European nations.
But to their credit, the Swedes ignored the “mad modelers” such as Britain’s Imperial College team, which predicted multiple times that the number of deaths around the world would be more than actually occurred.
Sweden made some mistakes at the beginning. Like many states in the United States, the Swedes failed to protect elderly nursing home residents adequately, which was a significant reason that deaths in Sweden were higher than in neighboring Norway or Denmark. But Tegnell argued that the collateral damage of lockdowns would outweigh what good they do on a societywide basis. He was proven right.
Two years later, Sweden’s COVID-19 death rate is 1,614 per million people — much lower than Britain (2,335) or the U.S. (2,836), which both had much more stringent lockdowns.
Sweden appears to have achieved herd immunity much more swiftly and thoroughly than other nations. Deaths were higher at the start of the pandemic but fell much lower than other lockdown nations in succeeding months.
What is clear today is that the Swedes saved their economy. This year, it’s projected to be 5% larger than before the pandemic, compared to a 2% gain for Germany and a 1% gain for Britain. Moreover, the extra debt Sweden has had to take on is a fraction of that of lockdown countries. So it will not have to spend decades paying for the costs of lockdowns.
Swedish schools stayed open with no face masks. Test scores are up, and there is no talk in Sweden about “lost” years of education.
What is sadly ironic about the Sweden story is this should have been the U.S. We’re the land of the free, not Sweden. We are the nation of rugged individualism, not Sweden, with its more socialist economy and collectivist mindset. We have more solid constitutional protections to guarantee citizen rights against heavy-handed government.
But the politicians from local health officials and mayors all the way up to the top federal medical experts and lawmakers opted for deadly decisions to shut down the engines of our economy and lock people in their homes. Those policies did irreparable harm that will be felt for many years to come. Those who supported this great mistake need to be held accountable.
Sweden’s successful response strategy reminds us that we must never again shut down our businesses and schools. I just pray we have all learned that enduring lesson before another virus wave arrives.“
(2). Just when you thought Progressives had plumbed the depths of perversion, we learn an unnamed female UPenn swimmer has bravely revealed, “It’s [the locker room] definitely awkward because Lia still has male body parts and is still attracted to women.” Sorry, but how does a dude who identifies as a woman get a woody looking at “other” women?!? Unless, of course, he’s a transgendered lesbian…with his own built-in strap-on!
(4). Jim Freeman informs us, even though Iowa doesn’t have one of the most competitive tax regimes in the country, Republican governor Kim Reynolds, who’ll be delivering the GOP response to 46*’s State of Disunion address, sure has it moving in the right direction.
As this from Balls suggests, were we giving the Republican response, it would be simple and straight-forward…
…accompanied only another graph showing grocery prices.
(5). Taking a sharp Left turn, based on this forward from George Lawlor, Kommielaa evidently believes…
Kamala Harris: “Elections matter. And when folks vote, they order what they want — and in this case they got what they asked for. I went off script a little bit.” pic.twitter.com/lMKmUc2yF3
…as Ted Cruz tweeted, those casting ballots for Biden wanted were voting for record Inflation, record border crisis, closed schools, a war on American energy, the Afghanistan disaster and a Russia invasion of Ukraine.
Reports FEMA threatens non-compliance will result in ejection from one’s current shelter and a lifetime ban on future shelter access remain unconfirmed.
Which brings us, appropriately enough, to The Lighter Side…
Then there’s these from James Patrick…
…the lovely Shannon…
…Brenda Berry…
…and Balls Cotton:
Last, but certainly not least, here’s a photo of the American Freedom Convoy passing through the Memphis area taken by our comely sister-in-law Jackie:
Reports a significant number of the truckers pulled over and tried to pick Jackie up remain unsubstantiated…but highly likely! And to think she doesn’t hold a candle to TLJ!
Finally, we’ll call it a day with another meme Balls sent us…
…which gave us pause for thought: Too bad The Donald didn’t display this attitude in the run-up to the special election for Georgia’s two Senate seats.
Still, better late than never.
Magoo
Video of the Day
Ami Horowitz provides the perfect accompaniment to Biden’s State of Disunion address. No matter what lies 46* plied Tuesday evening, this doesn’t bode well for the Dims in November.
Tales of The Darkside
Ben Shapiro weighs in on Kommielaa’s last bit of buffoonery.
On the Lighter Side
SNL belatedly wakes up to the reality the rest of us recognized almost two years ago.
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