From Roger Kimball:
“Remember the ‘pipe bombs’ that were supposedly planted by ‘insurrectionists’ [on Jan 6 2020]? It turns out they were almost certainly dummy explosives planted by government agents.”
Yeah… funny how that investigation suddenly evaporated, and news reports thereof disappeared down Winston Smith’s memory hole tube.
By “funny” I mean like “watching your dog getting run over by a truck” funny.
Feel the burn…
Readers may remember this little bit of news from last week:
A driver who was trapped behind the wheel of an out-of-control Jaguar I-Pace has revealed to MailOnline how he almost cheated death as his car accelerated up to 100mph on the busy M62 motorway without brakes.
Nathan Owen, 31, was on his way back from his first day at a new job when his 2019 electric car started malfunctioning, sparking a huge police operation to bring his car to a stop after 35 minutes of hell.
But in a shock revelation, Mr Owen told how his car had also gone rogue on the motorway in December, this time reaching up to 120mph.
Well, if you thought that was the end of the story, you forgot that this happened in Britishland, so of course there’s a sequel:
Police have arrested a Jaguar I-Pace driver on suspicion of dangerous driving after his ‘out-of-control’ car had to be rammed off the road by officers when it ‘went rogue’ at speeds of up to 100mph.
Nathan Owen, 31, was arrested by Merseyside Police in relation to the incident on the M62 on Wednesday, March 6.
He was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and causing a public nuisance and taken into police custody to be questioned.
Mr Owen claimed his £80,000 electric car went gone rogue on the motorway that day, sparking a huge police operation to bring his car to a stop after 35 minutes of hell.
His arrest comes after a detailed investigation was carried out by police and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) – who said it ‘seeks to investigate all reports of issues relating to product safety’.
Yeah, surrounded by umpteen police cars, he just carried on speeding — of course it’s his fault, even though ’twas Owen himself who called the rozzers for help.
Once again, I’m reminded of the incident in Joseph Heller’s Catch-22, when MPs burst into a hotel room where Aarfy has just thrown a whore out of a window to her death — and arrest Yossarian for being AWOL.
Fucking hell.
I thought this nonsense had been declared illegal:
Several major credit card companies have decided to move forward with a plan to track purchases made at gun retailers in California, CBS News reported Monday.
American Express, Visa, and Mastercard will implement a new merchant code for firearm and ammunition retailers, allowing banks to track “suspicious” purchases to comply with a new California law.
As I’ve said before, whenever government needs a BJ, corporations have absolutely no problem falling to their knees.
Fuckers.
Cash. Gun shows/estate sales. Individual purchases. (I don’t know how any of this would help CA residents, as they appear to be doomed, gun-wise.)
Update: Seems like Idaho has the right idea, though.
The most important and consequential trend of the twenty-first century has been the rapid expansion of centralized power and the resulting collapse of government competence. We are experiencing widespread and accelerating [federal] government failure.
…
Ironically, a collapse of the U.S. government would produce many great benefits, given its present size, cost, intrusiveness, and ineptitude. Of course, the social dysfunction caused by disruption of Social Security and other entitlements would be massive; shortages of food and other essentials would be devastating; the temptation for other nations to attack us in a variety of ways would be irresistible; and other dire problems would arise.
The states, however, especially the red ones, would surely step in to restore order and cooperate with one another to support interstate commerce, protect the nation’s borders, and take care of the less fortunate in more sensible and affordable ways. As the Texas border protection effort indicates, many states are eager to do just that.
Though it would involve an agonizing period of adjustment, a devolution of power from the federal government to the states and localities would be a boon, well worth the temporary suffering. Until governments stop promising the moon, conditions here in the real world will continue to deteriorate.
I know that all the Kool Kidz (i.e. the Biden Administration and the Deep State) seem to treat the Constitution as a minor annoyance, to be brushed aside whenever it gets in the way of whatever ghastly thing they’re doing to fuck America over.
Of course, that might cut both ways, in this case when it comes to that pesky part that says that only U.S.-born people can become President. (Lest we get any ideas: amongst other things, it prevents me from running for President, which really is A Good Thing.)
But tell me that you don’t get feelings of longing when you realize that this guy is also prevented from becoming Our Guy:
Argentinian President Javier Milei is continuing his effort to shrink the size of the country’s government. Under his leadership, the government recently cut yet another pound of regulatory flesh from Argentina’s economy.
On Monday, it was reported that the state pushed forth another deregulation package in an effort to free up more of the nation’s market by getting rid of “Soviet resolutions.”
I just came over all tingly. None of that “Add one, subtract two” of the First Trump Presidency: this guy’s just chainsawing the whole fucking regulatory thicket out of existence.
Every time I see what Milei’s doing, I feel the need for a cigarette. And I don’t even smoke.
Nothing like a little Fort Sumter-style action to brighten my day:
The Texas National Guard continued to install razor wire along the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Biden administration could cut through or remove the razor wire.
“The Texas Military Department continues to hold the line in Shelby Park to deter and prevent unlawful entry into the State of Texas,” Texas said in a statement. “We remain resolute in our actions to secure our border, preserve the rule of law, and protect the sovereignty of our State.”
To make it quite clear:
“The State of Texas, under Gov. @GregAbbott_TX ’s Operation Lone Star, will maintain its current posture in deterring illegal border crossings by utilizing effective border security measures – reinforced concertina wire & anti-climb barriers along the Rio Grande. The logical concern should be why the Federal Government continues to hinder Texas’ ability to protect its border, all while allowing for the exploitation, dangerous, & inhumane methods of permitting illegal immigrants, including children, to illegally cross a dangerous river where many have lost their lives. Texas is the only state using every strategy & resource to protect its sovereignty, combat criminal activity, & discourage illegal immigration. #Texas will continue to hold the line.”
Works for me. I think “Fuck you, feds” is in our state constitution somewhere. If it isn’t, it could well be there after the next election.
Jokes aside, the interesting part of all this is a Constitutional one.
One of the primary functions of the federal government is to secure and maintain the nation’s borders against incursions from foreign nationals (hence the existence of a federal defense force and an immigration department). If the federal government is failing in that duty, is it not the duty of the border states to fulfill that function?
Asking for a friend (in this case, TXGov Abbott).
And lastly, to the Supreme Court:
Fuck you, too.
(signed: the State of Texas)
