Free Republic

Here in Virginia, the ballot is very light, since the state races (Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General and General Aasembly races were held last year. In my section of the 1st Congressional District, there are only two races on the ballot—the Congressional contest between incumbent Republican Rob Wittman and Democrat Herb Jones, and a Commonwealth’s Attorney race where the GOP incumbent is running unopposed.

With so few races at stake, I was surprised to see the parking lot of the voting site (local elementary school) was three-quarters filled when I arrived at 6:05 am (polls opened at 6 am). Suggests a heavier-than-expected turnout among GOP voters, which may improve chances of defeating Democrat Reps Elaine Lauria and Abigail Spanberger. Both are Pelosi sock puppets who need to be retired

Not a neurologist and never played one on TV, but I don’t think Fetterman’s long-term survival prospects are very good. His condition seems to be deteriorating, and who knows what that lump on his neck is all about.

If the Dims keep the race within the margin of cheating and put Lurch over the top, he won’t survive a year in office. At that point, the Pennsylvania governor (most likely the Democrat Shapiro) will appoint his grieving widow, Gisele, to serve out his term. Watching her in action, it looks like the promise has already been made.

In related news, the Democrat Secretary of State announces it may “take weeks” to count the ballots. Guess those semi-truck loads of pre-filled ballots are still at the printer

Had the same thought...and while I respect Dave’s advice, it’s worth remembering that even when he was dead broke after his fledgling real estate “empire” collapsed, he never delivered pizzas. He claims he ate a lot of beans and rice, but there’s no mention of him knocking on doors and delivering pies to earn a buck.

Guy was 62 years old and delivering pizzas in a bad Detroit neighborhood. God rest his soul, and I can only wonder about the circumstances that put him in that position.

BTW, do the pizza chains do anything for the families of delivery drivers killed on the job? Or do they just post a notice for another position that’s now open.

Social promotions in government schools are not a recent invention. Looks like he was a jock, so there was probably some pressure to get him through classes and keep him eligible.

The most heated argument I ever saw in college (late 70s) came in political science class. The professor was a conservative who later became a senior official at the National Endowment for the Humanities. Somehow, class discussion drifted to the “easiest” college major. As a journalism major, I slid down in my seat and watched the fireworks begin when someone asked the professor. His answer? “If I have a student who really wants to stay in school, but can’t handle any other major, I send them to the education department. Haven’t met anyone yet who can’t earn an education degree.”

Naturally, there were lots of future teachers in the class, and they howled. But the professor held his ground, saying the easiest classes he ever took were those required for his teaching credential. After that, the ed majors in the classroom gave up their fight. They knew he was right.

WIBC is a strong number two in the Indianapolis market. If Urban One wants to blow up a very successful station, go ahead. I’m guessing they will keep the current format, or sell the station to another group. IHeart owns five stations in the market. They could swap their hip hop station for WIBC and pay a little cash, since WIBC is worth far more than WZRL, the rap station they’d be selling.

The same guy who is now refusing to cooperate with the Texas DPS investigation into his department’s conduct.

It keeps changing, and funny, they haven’t released tapes of the 911 calls. If the shooter was taking shots at the funeral home (and other targets) for 12 minutes before entering the school, it’s certain that the local 911 call center lit up like a Christmas tree. That would be enough to send every available cop to the scene, and in a town of 16,000—at that time of day—they should have arrived on the scene in less than five minutes.

And sadly, it looks like most of the local cops were more concerned about securing the perimeter than entering the school and taking out the bad guy. This same “regional director” said today that calls went out for additional weapons, body armor and hostage negotiators (you read that right), as kids were being slaughtered in the classroom. If the director is right, the Uvalde police department didn’t have enough weaponry to go after the bad guy, and no one could find someone with a master key to open the door. Never mind the fact that the principal had one, as did the assistant principal, janitor and (likely) several teachers.
If you buy that story about the key, I can give you a great deal on a bridge in Brooklyn.

Sounds like the school shooting in Florida, where the “resource officer” headed in the opposite direction when shots rang out. Last I heard, he was facing charges, but collecting an $8,000 monthly pension—you read that right. Meanwhile, another deputy who was fired for hiding in his car during the massacre won his job back through arbitration—with back pay

Thanks for your post, and you deserve great credit for nursing your husband through his battle with Alzheimer’s. I’ve known families where the burden became to great (from their perspective) and the loved one was deposited into a nursing home. In my experience, they decline rapidly after being institutionalized. One of my sister-in-laws lasted barely a year and she suffered two falls (one resulting in a broken hip) while in the care of a highly-regarded facility.

Someday, I think we will get an insider account of Biden’s struggle with dementia while in the White House. It will shock a lot of people. Like many patients in severe cognitive decline, he has good days and many bad ones. We’ll eventually discover what drugs/treatments were used to keep him propped up and looking at the teleprompter. It won’t be a pretty picture.

I believe those weekend trips to Delaware are being used to treat the various conditions he’s suffering from. The USSS has conveniently “lost” visitor logs to his Delaware residences, so we don’t know who’s coming and going. I’m guessing his regular visitors include medical specialists and they don’t want their names appearing on the White House logs.

Thanks for your post, and you deserve great credit for nursing your husband through his battle with Alzheimer’s. I’ve known families where the burden became to great (from their perspective) and the loved one was deposited into a nursing home. In my experience, they decline rapidly after being institutionalized. One of my sister-in-laws lasted barely a year and she suffered two falls (one resulting in a broken hip) while in the care of a highly-regarded facility.

Someday, I think we will get an insider account of Biden’s struggle with dementia while in the White House. It will shock a lot of people. Like many patients in severe cognitive decline, he has good days and many bad ones. We’ll eventually discover what drugs/treatments were used to keep him propped up and looking at the teleprompter. It won’t be a pretty picture.

I believe those weekend trips to Delaware are being used to treat the various conditions he’s suffering from. The USSS has conveniently “lost” visitor logs to his Delaware residences, so we don’t know who’s coming and going. I’m guessing his regular visitors include medical specialists and they don’t want their names appearing on the White House logs.

I was retired from the biz by that time, so I can’t say. However, there have been numerous cases where the intel community was surprised by the passing of a foreign leader, despite indicators and warning signs.

Case in point: the death of Soviet leader Yuri Andropov in early 1984, less than two years after taking office. Western intelligence believed Andropov had health issues but they were under control and he would serve as head of the USSR for an extended period. In reality, Andropov suffered from severe kidney disease and was placed in a special hospital in 1983, only 9 months into his tenure. He died five months later, a development that stunned the CIA and other western intel agencies.

Chavea, as you indicate, was also able to conceal his declining health until nearly the end, by seeking treatment in a foreign, authoritarian state where the doctors won’t talk and medical records can’t be easily accessed.

Hammer, meet nail. And far too many chasers are amateurs who don’t know what they’re doing. Chasing tornadoes is best learned at the elbow of someone who’s experienced and can show you the ropes before striking out on your own.

Had a former son-in-law who wanted to go chasing in Mississippi when I lived there. My answer was no/hell no, because a) He had no experience and I had very little; b) many tornadoes in the Magnolia State occur at night, and virtually all of them are rain-wrapped and c) in a state with lots of hills and pine trees, twisters are even more difficult to spot, especially when they drop from a low cloud base, which happens more often than not. And finally, Mississippi doesn’t have the best road network, so chances for a crash in bad weather are further increased.

As far as I know he never went chasing; my daughter was smart to divorce him, for a number of reasons. I’ve thought about going on a chasing tour (with an experienced operator), but I have no desire to do it on my own.

In my spook days, I attended an analyst’s course at Langley (I was not CIA; I worked for a military intel analytical center). One of the guest speakers was a member of the Langley team that attempted to analyze the health of foreign leaders. He cautioned that such assessments are little more than speculation, unless you have access to the doctors who treated the leader, medical records, or both. And of course, the potential for exaggeration or disinformation is always present.

Putin’s health appears to be declining, but I would avoid consigning him to a death pool. If I had a buck for every time Fidel Castro was supposedly at death’s door (before he finally expired), I’d be typing this from my beach house in Belize.

On the other hand, it would be interesting to know how foreign intelligence services assess Biden’s health. Guessing the Russians, Chinese, Israeli and European agencies see him as being in worse shape than Putin—and you don’t need a medical degree to see that.

Bingo...especially when the left won’t extend the same courtesy to people who disagree with them. In fact, they’re counting on conservatives to prostrate themselves in front of the liberal mob, who will then proceed to dox them, get them fired and make their lives a living hell.

No more Mr. Nice Guy (or Girl)....

Mike actually brought something to the table and attracted viewers. Many will recall that Walter Cronkite was forced off the CBS Evening News in 1981, the company cited their “mandatory” retirement age of 65. At the time, Mike Wallace was already 62 and there was no mention of a similar policy for him. The reason? 60 Minutes was the network’s top show and a huge revenue generator, and Wallace was a part of that success. He remained with the show for another 26 years, until retiring at the age of 88.

In reality, the reason for Cronkite’s exit was to give the anchor job to Dan Rather, who was threatening to bolt to ABC if CBS didn’t meet his demands. Given the fact that Rather led the Evening News into last place (where it remains today), it makes you wonder about the intelligence level of network executives. Cronkite hated Rather with a passion, but he was bought off with a $1 million annual pension and a seat on the CBS board. When Rather was canned for the “Memogate” fraud, Cronkite stopped by the office of then-CBS President Les Moonves, to congratulate him on making the right decision...

Chris has been a failure throughout his broadcast career. In the early 80s, NBC tried to re-tool the “Today” show around Wallace, Jane Pauley and Bryant Gumbel. Wallace was a horrible fit and lasted only a year. He then migrated to ABC where he was a reporter for various news magazines and fill-in anchor on Nightline. ABC made no effort to keept him when he migrated to FNC to host the Sunday show, which remained in last place throughout his tenure.

Must be nice to have a family name that allows you to fail at such a high level (and highly compensated level) for that long.

No kidding. He’s 74 years old. Despite meager ratings for “Fox News Sunday,” he left a secure job at FNC for CNN+.

And he can’t say there weren’t warning signs on the horizon. When he signed with CNN+, He knew that Time Warner (parent company) was in the process of being absorbed by Discovery. He knew senior execs at Discovery (and major shareholders in the company) had serious reservations about what’s been going on at CNN. Yet, he took the plunge and when a whopping 10,000 people signed up for the streaming service, the Discovery team did the smart thing and pulled the plug.

Not enough open jobs behind the cameras (or host positions) at “main” CNN, so most of those hired, like Chrissy, are being terminated. Guessing he had a guaranteed contract, so he’ll walk away with a seven-figure buyout, to join the million$ he already has in the bank.

Soup’s on Chris...go help your wife in the kitchen, and invite some of your Democratic politician friends over. You won’t be missed...

Officially, no..but there are rumors that recently-retired CEO Bob Iger is warming up in the bullpen for a return to the corner office. While the woke mobs in the animation division and the film studio promise more protests and walk-outs, the bean counters are looking at revenue projections and are looking a window to jump out of.

Watch the summer numbers for Disneyland, Disney World and some of the new movies. Lots of speculation that visits and ticket sales will be down significantly, as flyover country reacts to the Mouse that Went Woke. Also, it looks like sign-ups for Disney + have been slowing since last fall and you may see a net decrease in the months ahead: https://fortune.com/2021/11/10/disney-streaming-sign-up-growth-disappoints-wall-street-sending-shares-tumbling-3/

There’s a belief that Iger could somehow navigate the wokeness path without alienating the “ordinary” Americans the company relies on for its revenue. But it’s a pipe dream; Walt’s company has gone too far for 98% of its customer base and they will pay a heavy price. Couldn’t happen to a more deserving bunch....

Can’t disagree; their ratings are in the tank, and as Mr. Malone has indicated, it’s time for massive changes. Wouldn’t be surprised if CNN debuts one or two prime-time newscasts. It would serve them well during periods of breaking news. The “old” CNN founded by Ted Turner made its bones focusing on the news.

The problem, of course, is minimizing the overwhelming liberal bias that pervades everything the network does. And the guy they just hired to run the show, Chris Licht, is a veterans of the CBS “Early Show,” and Stephen Colbert’s talk show.

The good news? Licht is on a very short lease; John Malone has already talked about what he (largest shareholder) and the Discovery team are expecting, and it’s nothing like the Zucker/TimeWarner CNN. If Licht can’t deliver, he’ll get canned in a couple of years and Discovery will move on. Licht won’t get nine years to reverse CNN’s fortunes (like Zucker did). He made the right call in shuttering CNN+ (with the full support of his corporate bosses). It won’t be the last wave of firings under his watch.

The Discovery team is very focused on the bottom line, as is their largest shareholder, John Malone. He has let it be known that changes must be made at CNN, and you’re starting to see them. If I were Brian Stelter, I’d be polishing my audition tape—and fast. Malone has described Stelter as a “cancer” at the network. That doesn’t sound very promising, in terms of long-term employment prospects.