April 7-8, 2018
Apr 07 03:10 Another Parkland shooting bombshell? Apr 07 09:17 Liberal stupidity on parade Apr 07 09:54 Rick Scott vs. Bill Nelson Apr 07 11:57 That's the Democrats' security plan? Apr 08 02:16 Government getting arrogant Apr 08 03:44 Parkland's inspirational hero Apr 08 21:00 Rep. Walz's border security indifference
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Another Parkland shooting bombshell?
Once the media hysteria died after the Parkland shooting and people had time to investigate what actually happened, people noticed that Parkland officials made quite a few mistakes. Investigators noticed that Deputy Scot Peterson didn't rush into the building to save students, instead opting to establish a perimeter from the safety of his car.
Thanks to a timeline published in this article , we know quite a few things about what happened that tragic day. We know that, sometime after 2:23 pm, Deputy Peterson shouted "Get the school locked down, gentlemen!" Potentially, this is a huge point in light of information that we're now learning about. According to this article , "a threat assessment [was] performed months ahead of the tragedy."
According to the source, the "threat assessment was done by a retired Secret Service agent, and it was known that he was going to do this assessment by the Safety Committee but that no one else at Stoneman Douglas would be aware of it, including administration except for that one administrator on the committee." Further, it's alleged that the "Secret Service agent came in. He parked in the front of the school for 20 minutes. He was never approached by anyone. He gained entry to the campus never being stopped by anyone at any time and put Post-Its on 21 random people.' Each Post-It note represented a potential casualty."
If this is verified as true, this is another bombshell. If true, it's another instance of governmental incompetence. Allegedly, one of the recommendations from the former Secret Service agent was to keep the gates of the school locked. Another alleged recommendation was to not immediately evacuate the classroom in the event of a fire alarm. "Prior to the shooting, Cruz activated a fire alarm, sending students flooding into the hallway where he could target them."
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If I was the parent of one of the 14 students who lost their lives that day, I'd demand to know why these common sense precautions weren't taken prior to the shooting. In one sense, in fact, it's irrelevant whether a threat assessment was conducted. It's irrelevant whether these recommendations were made, too.
These precautions have been implemented across the nation. Why didn't the school board insist that these precautions be made? Cameron Kasky, David Hogg and Emma Gonzalez might be world-class activists but their credibility is definitely shrinking.
No matter how emphatically they say it, the NRA doesn't have blood on their hands. The Broward County Sheriff's Office, aka Broward's Cowards, have blood on their hands. Ditto with the School Board. Ditto with the people who repeatedly questioned Nikolas Cruz but didn't institutionalize him.
With all of this information, it's difficult to picture how the NRA is even slightly to blame for the Parkland Massacre.
Posted Saturday, April 7, 2018 3:10 AM
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Liberal stupidity on parade
If stupidity were money, the writer of this LTE would be wealthy. Early in the LTE, the writer poses a hypothetical situation, saying "Say Matt, 23, dies from an IED in Afghanistan. His rising life is cut short. The anguish is felt by his grandparents, parents, brothers, sisters, in-laws, nephews, nieces - and all their friends and relatives, and Matt's uncles, aunts, cousins, acquaintances, friends, HS classmates, their parents, college classmates, friends, girlfriends, athletic mates, armed service mates, acquaintances - pain multiplied exponentially compared to an abortion. Pain that goes on forever."
A few paragraphs later, the writer employs a guilt-trip strategy, writing "Then the same goes for the loved ones and friends of the wounded - physically, emotionally, psychologically. Not to mention the loss of productivity to society. Add massive costs for decades more that you and I foot to aid the wounded warriors. And the conservative reaction to all this carnage? Threats of more wars. And big yawns; hiding behind the skirts of the NRA and a lack of common sense about the second amendment. (Bazookas, grenades and howitzers have been outlawed without 'taking all our guns.') If conservatives truly cared about gun deaths, their abortion signs would add, 'Save our young adults. Outlaw AR-15s.'"
The writer must be physically fit because that's a hell of a leap. Seriously, outlawing AR-15s won't come close to putting a dent in mass shooting deaths. Eliminating AR-15s wouldn't even eliminate 1% of shooting deaths.
Let's talk about the forever popular with progressives assault weapons ban while we're at it. The progressives' definition of an assault weapon is nothing more than a scary-looking semi-automatic rifle. If people want to be consistent, people that want to ban 'assault weapons' would have to eliminate all semi-automatic weapons.
Here's a question that hasn't been discussed. If these gun grabbers truly wanted to put a significant dent in gun deaths, why aren't they calling for the elimination of handguns?
Instead of going the gun-grabbing route, we'd be better off if we implemented programs that already have a history of success. Sen. Marco Rubio, the politician accused of having blood on his hands because he's accepted campaign contributions from the NRA, wrote this op-ed to highlight what Congress has already done :
Just five weeks after the tragedy in Parkland, Congress passed a spending bill that authorizes $1 billion over the next decade to improve the safety of our schools. The STOP School Violence Act is set to immediately provide resources to schools and their communities to prevent violence before it ever begins.
Being proactive is better than efficiently reacting.
The new money would be available to local governments and schools to implement programs like Los Angeles County's successful School Threat Assessment Response Team , which coordinates the efforts of law enforcement, schools and mental health professionals to make sure nobody slips through the cracks. It will fund anonymous reporting systems like the Safe UT app, and help school districts create and train intervention teams to seek out the troubled students most likely to pose risks like what happened in Parkland.
Rather than listen to the mindless yapping of young activists like David Hogg and Emma Gonzalez, Congress has funded an effective program that seeks to expand from Los Angeles to the entire nation. Here's why that's important:
School safety programs that had previously been subject to budget cuts or staff turnover will have additional resources for operations and for investments in improvements. Local government officials, and the parents and families they represent, will be able to use the money for solutions that work best for their communities based on tried and true approaches.
It's time for the activists to get off the stage. They've been discredited because improving school safety doesn't require trampling people's civil rights. Cameron Kasky, David Hogg and Emma Gonzalez are poorly-trained actors with a loser's script:
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Posted Saturday, April 7, 2018 9:17 AM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 07-Apr-18 04:39 PM
Progressives will never make any sense when it comes to legislation because they are driven by emotion and not common sense. Banning AR-15's will do nothing to solve the school shooting "crisis" they are not letting go to waste so they will want all guns banned. Then it will have to be knives because that's what the criminals will turn to next like the have in London. Bad people will always do bad things.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 07-Apr-18 06:48 PM
Chad, that's a great point. Let's suppose that they ban assault weapons & the shootings continue. What's the Democrats' next step at that point?
Rick Scott vs. Bill Nelson
If this article is right, Democrats will have another endangered senator to protect or lose. According to the article, "Republican Rick Scott's expected announcement Monday of his candidacy for U.S. Senate figures to make the Florida race the marquee contest of 2018, as the two-term governor carries a unique set of advantages that could neutralize strong headwinds facing his party in November."
At this point, the DSCC will have to start deciding which senators they won't have the money to save. It isn't a matter of whether Democrats will lose seats in the US Senate. It's a matter of how many seats they'll lose this November. This is important:
Unlike GOP colleagues also running against Democratic incumbents in states Donald Trump won, Scott would be able to self-fund his campaign, if needed, in what is sure to be one of the most expensive races in the country. He also will be on a glide path to his party's nomination, allowing him to avoid the bruising primaries afflicting other Republican candidates and instead to focus on the general election. Republicans believe he will be able to capitalize on his perch as governor in the swing state, entering the race as a known figure with a built-in infrastructure and a stable economy.
His fundraising ability alone "makes him the worst nightmare for Democrats," added another Republican operative close to the contest, noting that Florida will be the most expensive of the 10 seats Democrats are defending in states Trump won.
Undoubtedly, this will be a tough fight for both politicians. I haven't looked in awhile but the last I looked, Nelson led Scott by 2-3 points. Obviously, that's easily within the margin of error. Scott's official announcement will give Scott a short-lived bounce. The key to this race, though, is that Rick Scott will be that Scott will be able to blunt Nelson's advantage in southeastern Florida but Nelson will have a dogfight on his hands in Florida's Republican-rich panhandle. Then there's this:
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Signing this bill is both a blessing and a curse. Still, it blunts the argument that Scott is the NRA's pawn.
Posted Saturday, April 7, 2018 9:54 AM
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That's the Democrats' security plan?
With Arizona and Texas sending National Guard troops to the border , it's clear who's serious about securing the nation and who isn't .
If Democrats gain a majority in the House, they'll revert to their open borders policies:
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi ripped President Trump on Twitter Thursday for "pointlessly" sending troops to the border instead of working with Democrats on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The California Democrat wrote: "@realDonaldTrump is using every cynical political trick in the book to ignite anti-immigrant fervor. Needlessly militarizing our southern border won't make Americans more safe - it's just another political calculation.
"Instead of wasting resources on pointlessly sending troops to our border, @realDonaldTrump should work with Democrats to pass the DREAM Act & #ProtectDREAMers," she added.
Tell Mary Ann Mendoza that stopping illegal aliens at the border isn't important. Mrs. Pelosi, I want you to look Sabine Durden in the eyes, then tell her that stopping illegal aliens at the border. Mrs. Pelosi, I triple-dog dare you to tell Agnes Gibboney that enforcing our immigration laws aren't important.
Apparently, doing nothing is the Democrats' plan. Americans, if you want lax border security, catch-and-release immigration enforcement and MS-13 running free without fear, vote Democrat. I've yet to find one that's serious about securing the border. Americans, if you want the opioid epidemic to get worse, vote Democrat. Thanks to the Obama administration's lax border enforcement, drug shipments entered the US without interruption or interdiction.
This Prager University video explains what must be done to take illegal immigration seriously:
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With Democrats complaining about the costs of securing the border, let's ask these whiney lefties how much it costs the US to pay for educating illegal aliens, how much it costs for the illegal aliens' welfare benefits and how much it costs in terms of crimes committed by illegal aliens.
I'm betting that the cost of building a wall is a pittance compared with the costs of drug smuggling, welfare benefits and education.
Finally, let's praise governors Doug Ducey and Greg Abbott for swiftly deploying the National Guard troops. They're doing more than their fair share to keep Americans safe. That's something I can't say about the Democrats.
Posted Saturday, April 7, 2018 11:57 AM
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Government getting arrogant
If people don't care about civil rights, this article likely won't bother you. If you're big into government accountability, though, it's a big deal. Here's what happened.
Gary Gileno is an anti-illegal immigration activist and prolific YouTuber. Gileno "tried to bring a video camera into a meeting of the Los Angeles County Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission last year. California law specifically allows the public to use recording devices at such meetings, but the commission's meeting in August was held at a federal appellate court building where filming is prohibited."
When Gileno tried taping the meeting, "deputy U.S. marshals told him he had to leave his camera in his car. Gileno insisted he had a right to record the meeting under the First Amendment and the state's open meetings law, known as the Brown Act, and began filming the officers."
First, I'd love hearing what statute was broken. Next, I'd love hearing the Commission's explanation for why they moved the meeting to a building that doesn't allow the videotaping of the meeting. If civilians are to provide oversight into this program, shouldn't that information be available to everyone in video form? If that information isn't available in video form, isn't that effectively hiding the information from citizens? In this video, Gileno explains the events leading up to his arrest:
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According to this video's description, "The CA Brown Act guarantees that citizens at public meetings do not have to present ID, can record and display signs." Despite that, a "citizen You Tuber was arrested for recording" the meeting.
I'm not a legal expert so I won't speculate whether a civil suit should be filed against this 'Civilian Commission' that held its meeting at a location where videotaping isn't allowed. I won't hesitate in opining on whether the Commission acted improperly in silencing this journalist. Shame on their silencing this citizen journalist.
Posted Sunday, April 8, 2018 2:16 AM
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Parkland's inspirational hero
Many of the Parkland people that've hogged the spotlight (pun intended) can't hold a candle to one of the true heroes of that horrific day. At the age of 15, Anthony Borges has done more heroic things than David Hogg and Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel will likely do in their combined lifetimes. All young Mr. Borges did on that fateful day was use his body to protect the lives of 20 other students .
Compare that with disgraced Deputy Scot Peterson, who stayed outside to establish a perimeter while Nikolas Cruz allegedly fired his weapon, killing 14 students and 3 teachers. But I digress.
Borges "was released from the hospital Wednesday after suffering wounds to the lungs, abdomen and legs." In his statement, which was read by his attorney, Borges said Superintendent Runcie and Sheriff Israel "failed us students, teachers and parents alike on so many levels. I want all of us to move forward to end the environment that allowed people like Nikolas Cruz to fall through the cracks. You knew he was a problem years ago and you did nothing. He should have never been in school with us."
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The FBI and the Broward County Sheriff's Office have come under intense scrutiny following the shooting. The FBI admitted days after the shooting that they received a call on Jan. 5 from a person close to Cruz expressing concerns about his erratic behavior and disturbing social media posts. The former school resource deputy, Scot Peterson, did not enter the school during the shooting. The former deputy denied wrongdoing and retired from the office before an investigation was launched.
Peterson is the poster child for a disgrace. What he did fits the description of a coward. Rest assured that he'll be one of the defendants in the Borges' civil lawsuit.
Posted Sunday, April 8, 2018 3:44 AM
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Rep. Walz's border security indifference
This tweet from Tim Walz says everything we need to know about his allegiance to the Democrats' special interests. Further, it says that Rep. Walz's allegiance isn't to protecting American citizens.
The tweet says "The way @realDonaldTrump treats Dreamers is no way for anyone to treat contributing patriotic members of our country. The way @realDonaldTrump approaches trade is no way for anyone to approach matters that have real-life impacts on working-class folks. Enough, Mr. President."
Rep. Walz has worked on veterans' issues for 11 years. It's still a problem, meaning that he's more into working on problems than he's into fixing problems. Working on problems is something that Gov. Dayton has focused on. He's worked on MNLARS. He's worked on MNsure. He's (barely) worked on the elder care home crisis. Each of these issues have been around 6-8 years. Of those issues, MNsure is the closest to being fixed. The others are far from fixed.
The way @realDonaldTrump treats Dreamers is no way for anyone to treat contributing patriotic members of our country.
The way @realDonaldTrump approaches trade is no way for anyone to approach matters that have real-life impacts on working-class folks.
Enough, Mr. President.
- Rep. Tim Walz (@RepTimWalz) April 2, 2018
Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
Here's a question to millennials: why vote for people who can't get a simple website to work? MNLARS doesn't work. MNsure didn't work. When you can't get a simple website working, what part of that sounds like someone equipped for life in the 21st century? Shouldn't our next governor be someone who's ready to create a MNLARS app? This is what Tim Walz thinks of rural Minnesota:
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Remember that Walz supposedly represents rural Minnesotans. If he cares that little about his own constituents, shouldn't we expect that he doesn't care about protecting the nation?
Posted Sunday, April 8, 2018 9:00 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 09-Apr-18 07:41 PM
Dreamers = law breakers so why are we trying to make sure they can stay here? I don't care if they came here with their parents 20 years ago or climbed over the wall yesterday, they broke the law and need to pay the price. If that means being deported to a country they know nothing about, so be it.
Without rules (or in this cases, laws), we'd all be a bunch of tree climbing crap flingers.
