FBI Doesn't Believe that It Has to Follow the Law

From PJ Media - FBI Defies Legal Ruling, Refuses to Hand Over Seth Rich Laptop

Remember Seth Rich, the DNC staffer who perished under highly questionable circumstances several years ago, whom many have speculated may have been the Wikileaks source for the DNC email hack of 2016?

So a DNC leaker who was shot twice in the back. I was shocked then, but I'm not now.

Apparently, in the state of anarcho-tyranny that we find ourselves in, the FBI can lie to the American people, defy duly appointed judges’ orders, and generally run amok with impunity. And there’s nothing anyone can do about it. Meanwhile, lying to the FBI as a lowly citizen is a criminal offense punishable by prison.

The have Seth Rich's laptop, and some other records, but they don't believe that they are subject to FOIA requests, even though a judge has ordered them to be turned over. I am also not shocked about this.

At this point I think we can say that the FBI is little more than the not-so-secret police of the Democratic party.

Living in a democratic republic was nice while it lasted.

Clouds That Never Rain

Pattern-Seeking Animals is another band that is new-to-me served up by the algorithm of the Tidal music streaming service. I found them by way of their Progressive Now: Best New Prog Rock playlist. I have to say that the curated playlists, or the ones created via their algorithm, are much superior to some of the other streaming services.

This is "Clouds That Never Rain" by Pattern-Seeking Animals from their October, 2023 album Spooky Action at a Distance.

Ratted Out By Their Own Flesh and Blood

From The Other McCain we get a story from Philadelphia. ‘Don’t Ever Take Sides With Anyone Against the Family Again. Ever.’

For once it doesn't focus on the violent crime running rampant in that city.

A brilliant scam, ruined because their own flesh and blood betrayed them to the feds! What part of omerta do I have to explain to these kids?

A Scene Comparison - Echo versus Atomic Blonde

Or, why Girl Bosses are incredibly boring.

The Message doesn't replace good story telling. Hollywood has forgotten that. Just like they forgot that special effects don't replace story telling. A lesson they learned in the 1990s, and then forgot in after 2015.

Failure is not an option for a Mary Sue.

Characters that can never fail, face no crisis. There are no stakes, when nothing is at stake. Plot armor is not a substitute for plot. Mary Sue is a boring character. And all of them are dying at the box office.

This is the Jedi Brooks video Why Disney Cant Write WOMEN - A Scene Comparison

Friday Links - 26 January

Chicago Contrarian starts us off with CTU’s Warpath to Eliminate All Choices for Chicago Families

Failing to educate kids is morally bankrupt enough, but the latest CPS Inspector General report should make all Chicagoans outraged.

Forgotten Weapons brings us a history lesson from the 1990s. Vila Velabita: Croatian Submachine Gun Made in a Shed

At the beginning of Croatia's Homeland War, a severe need for small arms led to a whole plethora of simple submachine gun designs. Some were made in proper factories with professional tooling, and some were made by a couple blokes in a shed - and the Vila Velabita we are looking at today definitely falls into the "blokes in a shed" category.

The Other McCain - The New Hype-Shire Primary

OK, that was unfair. Nobody hates syphilis as much as voters hate Joe Biden. Joe’s approval ratings are a toxic dumpster fire, and yet there are people who think Biden could somehow beat Trump in a rematch. Why do they think that? Maybe they’re watching CNN.

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 24 January 2023: Could We Not Edition

Google Chrome is to gain AI features including a writing helper, a theme creator, a tab organiser, a baby shower planner, and that one annoying relative who simply can't take a hint. (Tech Crunch)

Professor David Yamane and his Light Over Heat YouTube channel - Opportunities to Engage with Two Recent Books On Guns - Yes, One is Mine!

One is joining a Virtual Book Club I am organizing on Andrew McKevitt’s book, GUN COUNTRY: GUN CAPITALISM, CULTURE & CONTROL IN COLD WAR AMERICA. The 12 active slots are already taken, but you can still sign up to view the discussion. Registration is required and full details are available on the Google Form linked below.

Professor David Yamane at Gun Culture 2.0 - Castle Doctrine and Stand Your Ground (Still) Do Not Allow You To Murder People

At the time, I wrote an opinion for The Hill in which I argued that “Stand Your Ground laws do not allow you to ‘shoot first and ask questions later.’” (I also noted that the cases of Kaylin Gillis and Ralph Yarl do not even fall under “stand your ground” since they did not take place in public spaces.)

Mike Rowe - Scarcity Brain with Michael Easter

I’ve always thought there must be something more than boredom or greed or laziness, to attract so many to sit like zombies before these electronic temptations for hours on end. And sure enough, there is. A lot more.

Red State - OUTRAGE: NYU Professor Preaches Oct 7th Atrocity Denial to Students

Amin Husain is a "Palestinian-American" activist whose stock in trade is badmouthing America and Israel. He also was, until recently, an adjunct professor at New York University (NYU.) In his latest outrage, he appeared on video denying the Hama-inflicted atrocities in Israel on Oct 7th, 2023.

Self-defense Is Legal in Oregon

It can be hard to be sure in a Blue State. Shady Cove homeowner 'justified' in shooting burglar, new report says | CrimeWatch | KDRV

The guy who got shot broke into the home. This put him in violation of a court order. A temporary order had been obtained in September of last year, and it was made permanent in October of last year. The shooting was the 21st of November.

"Mr. Blough reported that he heard glass breaking, he saw the glass by the front door was shattered so he obtained his handgun before going to see what was happening," the release said. "Mr. Blough confronted Mr. Wilson who was inside the kitchen of the residence. Mr. Blough said Mr. Wilson said something to the effect of 'you better do it or you better pull the trigger' and then Mr. Wilson charged toward him."

He fired until Wilson fell to the floor. He had been shot 8 times.

There are more details, including about what lead to the imposition of a court order, the drugs found in his system by the autopsy's drug screen, and more.

Taking from the end of November until the end of January to make such a determination, isn't bad considering that getting bureaucracies to do anything over the holidays is next to impossible. There is no mention of a grand jury, so I have to assume that the DA made this determination. Given the rural nature of Shady Cove, this is not too surprising an outcome.

Shady Cove, Oregon is about 40 miles north of the California state line. It is about 100 miles south of Eugene, or 150 miles from Eugene by car.

Self-defense is a human-right, and even in a blue state it may be your legal right.

Social Justice Warriors Want to Destroy Engineering

I would say "scam artists" not scholars. Scholars call for ‘social justice’ in civil engineering courses

Civil engineering courses should not just focus on how to construct sewers, build roads, or design bridges — they should also include “social justice” and “diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice,” according to a recent academic paper.

Click thru for all the BS, and some rebuttal.

Hat tip Irons in the Fire: Something tells me the 'scholars' are either full of crap, or.

somehow plan to make a buttload of money on this bullshit. Probably both.

The FBI and FinCEN versus Your Constitutional Rights

How dare you disagree with the people in Washington DC! Feds, Banks Colluded to Snoop on Religious, Armed Americans

FinCEN is a branch of the Treasury Department that tries to stop money laundering. Or that is what they are supposed to do. They must have the drug trade stopped dead cold, because they are focusing on people with opinions they don't like.

This is not a new story, but there are new details. New to me at least. And this is certainly a complete summary of the targeting of Americans who dare to purchase "religious texts," support Donald Trump in his reelection bid, or exercise their 2nd Amendment rights. Do any of those things, and FinCEN considers you a violent extremist.

The U.S. Supreme Court also was labeled “extremist” by the Biden administration’s congressional allies after its June 2022 decision to overturn its 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade and return abortion policy to the hands of the people’s elected representatives. By this standard, any book or media that affirms the innate value of every human life would be classified as extreme—and that includes the Bible.

“If you’re looking for someone who bought religious text, or [something that] is related in some way to a ‘MAGA Republican’ or ‘Trump,’ is that not profiling?” asked Family Research Council President Tony Perkins.

Oh and if you disagreed with their Leftist leaning and owned guns, you were probably/definitely/maybe a terrorist. They couldn't seem to decide. In any event it meant you shouldn't have anything resembling privacy. Search Warrants? Probable Cause? Don't make me laugh! They're the FBI! They don't' need no stinkin' search warrants!

There is more, including some details from the 17th. Click thru.

The Culture War Sinks to New Lows

Twitchy - Amazon Prime's 'Hazbin Hotel' Makes Satan the Victim and Protagonist

And people say that Hollywood being a den of iniquity, run by a bevy of Satanists, is a conspiracy theory.

We get it. People like to be edgy and hate Christianity. Fine, they will learn that lesson someday and it will not be pretty but even the most depraved among us would not try to paint SATAN AS A PROTAGONIST and not just the good guy but a victim as well.

I have read, Paradise Lost, but that was not aimed at kids. It was also assumed that would not really be your introduction to the story of Lucifer being cast out of Heaven. But civilization has fallen a long way since Milton wrote his epic poem. And so we have Amazon, and the Satanists, and the kids' program.

Happy Anniversary to HeyJackass!

HeyJackass! is the only site with trustworthy statistics about crime in Chicago. There are a few reasons for that. 11 Years of Chicago Values

On January 25th, 2013, we launched a questionably named site with the simple idea of illustrating “Chicago values”. To this day, we still have no idea what Chicago values are or what they are supposed to represent. No matter its representation or meaning, it made for a fantastic tagline.

In the past 11 years, we’ve recorded over 7,000 homicides, over 30,000 shot and wounded, hundreds of “death investigations”, thousands of carjackings, and over a billion dollars in CPD overtime all of which have resulted in nearly a million manually entered, stupidity-related data points.

There is more, plus a link to the Substack with even more, including the "Chicago Values" origin.

Back in 2012, Rahm [Emanuel] was only in the second year of his eight-year run and decided to get involved in a local zoning matter regarding well-known beef-o-phobes, Chick-fil-A. During the controversy in which the alderman didn’t like CFA’s CEO’s politics, Rahm declared the now-immortalized Chicago values line:

“Chick-fil-A’s values are not Chicago values. And if you’re gonna be part of the Chicago community, you should reflect Chicago values.”

    - 9.5, July 25th, 2012

No one has defined what those values are, but lots of people die there every year due to lack of certain values.

First She Shot Him, Then He Was Charged

Why is it that people try to hurt their partners? South Carolina: Woman shoots boyfriend in self-defense

Investigators said Sanders and his girlfriend got into a fight and the woman shot Sanders in self-defense.

Sanders left the scene, after damaging the home, and was later found nearby, where he was arrested.

He was taken to a local hospital for his injuries. He was then charged. Charges include Domestic Violence.

I would say that he should learn how to chill.

Self-defense is a human-right.

UK Bows to China on Free Speech

In that place where Great Britain used to be...

It is a bit surprising, though not completely unexpected. Piano donated by Elton John 'guarded by security' after China tourists harass UK musician

A couple of days ago, British YouTuber Brendan Kavanagh was making a video/live-streaming playing the piano in St Pancras station. That piano was donated to the station by Sir Elton John specifically for the public to make music. While playing the piano, Kavanagh was approached by a group from China who DEMANDED that he stop filming. Police were eventually called. The entire video can be found at this link, though I have it mostly queued up to the appropriate part.

It has today emerged the instrument donated to the station by British music royalty has been cordoned off with pictures obtained exclusively by Express.co.uk showing it being guarded by security. A spokesperson for St Pancras station said the piano had been taped off "due to maintenance work taking place on the lift".

But speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk Mr Kavanagh said he was worried access had been restricted because of his row with the tourists from China.

The Express has reached out to Elton John's PR team to get a response.

The bureaucrats are saying that no, they haven't fenced off the piano for political reasons, it is because of work being done on an escalator. If that were true they would have moved the piano to a safe place until the work was completed.

The a bunch of Chinese tourists, waving communist flags, get to dictate free speech to the people of the United Kingdom. Is anyone really surprised?

Dominion Voting Machine Hacked Using Only a Pen

Jim Hoft at The Gateway Pundit - BREAKING: Professor and Election Expert J. Halderman Hacks into Dominion Voting Machine in Court on Friday in Georgia in front of Judge Totenberg USING ONLY A PEN TO CHANGE VOTE TOTALS

Who exactly thinks voting machines are a good idea? Oh, yeah, the Swamp, that's who.

Update: After speaking with election integrity expert Garland Favorito we discovered the courtroom display was much more serious than we originally reported. J. Alex Halderman demonstrated in court how Dominion machines are hacked and their tabulations were altered.

Just go read the whole thing. It isn't very long.

Wednesday Link Roundup - 24 January

Pirate's Cove is up first with Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup

9. Powerline covers importing drunks and murderers
10. Sultan Knish discusses Biden’s Taiwan betrayal

EBL - MAGA DeSantis: Suspends Campaign Endorses Trump ☀️

Instapundit: PJ Media: DeSantis ends campaign endorses Trump
RedState: DeSantis Out and Biden Sucks

Political Hat - News of the Week (January 21st, 2024)

The Democrats’ 2024 Plan Is Still Working to Perfection
Don’t be distracted by Biden’s weakness; Trump is still the candidate he wants to run against.

Don Surber - Highlights of the week

ITEM 4: Ward Clark reported, “Federal Government to Spend $700,000 Reminding Girls Who Identify as Boys That They Can Still Get Pregnant.”
Its slogan should be, “You’re Still A Girl, Sir.”

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 21 January 2024: Pal Is As Pal Does Edition

The same pathetic losers who tried to organise a boycott against the Harry Potter game Hogwarts Legacy are at it again with Palworld. (GGRecon)
With similar results.

A View from the Beach - Flotsam and Jetsam in the Wake of DeSantis' Departure

At Ace, An NGO to Fly Illegal Aliens Into America Is Founded By Former "American" Presidents Clinton, Obama, and George W. Bush "Fuck the Uniparty." Kaelan Deese at WaEx, Supreme Court allows Biden administration to cut Texas border wire.

Vlad Tepes - Tucker, Trump, WEF wants your coffee and more: Links 1 for January 23rd, 2024

2. WEF wants a penalty for the carbon created when growing coffee. There is no credit for the oxygen they make or the CO2 they absorb for some reason. Anyone who still falls for this stuff is learning disabled.

Gates of Vienna - News Feed 1/22/2024

Exclusive — Burgum: Biden’s Energy Policies Are ‘Destabilizing the Grid’
Gov. Doug Burgum sees Biden’s energy policies as “destabilizing the grid,” “raising the costs,” and benefiting foreign adversaries.

Small Dead Animals - Tuesday On Turtle Island

The re-education of Jordan Peterson. Justin’s CBC is excited about a new Islamophobia app. A Liberal/NDP coalition cover up. Canada is being demographically transformed.
Dementia Joe’s America: Three former presidents work together to bring in illegal aliens.

Bacon Time!!!! - Sunday Linkage

The Air Vent - Electric Vehicles are Not About Efficiency
Watts Up With That? - A Federal Power Grid Would be Everyone’s Worst Nightmare

Cafe Hayek - Some Links

My intrepid Mercatus Center colleague, Veronique de Rugy, continues her valiant crusade against the U.S. government’s addiction to indebtedness.

Maggie's Farm - Saturday morning links

Infamous ‘Zuckbucks’ Group Tries To Election-Meddle Again — This Time With Federal Tax Dollars
Heritage Foundation President Dishes Truth to Davos Elites

J.J. Sefton at Ace of Spades HQ - The Morning Report — 1/23/24

"I've been pushing for fundamental change on the border for a long time — a long time."
Biden Says There is No Crisis at the Border

Doug Ross - Larwyn’s Linx: 2024—America’s Year of Living Dangerously

• Islamic Terrorists Create Famines to Profit From Foreign Aid - Daniel Greenfield
• Another Desperate Move to Rig the Democrat Primary Is Now Under Investigation - RS

I leave you with Sunday Funnies from Flopping Aces, Meme+ Dump... Stay Defiant... from The Feral Irishman, Sunday Funnies For 01-21-24 from Stately McDaniel Manor, and Tuesday's gifs from Wirecutter.

Concealed Carry in Chicago Is Catching On

And most of us could stand to spend more time at the range. Concealed carry holder shoots at armed robber at taco stand: Chicago police - CWB Chicago

The robber was not hit by any bullets.

The well-known troublemaker pulled a gun on the staff at Taco Burrito King, 5413 West Belmont, around 9:35 p.m. and demanded cash from the register. Things went smoothly at first, with the cashier handing over money as instructed.

But then a “male victim” inside the restaurant who is a licensed concealed carry holder confronted the teen, Chicago police said in a media statement. The man pulled out his firearm and started shooting.

It was originally reported that the would-be bad-guy suffered an injury to his arm, but if so, it was from flying glass and not a bullet.

He ran for the exit, jumped in a black SUV, and sped away. But he didn’t get far. Police say he quickly crashed and then fled on foot. Cops caught him and recovered a firearm from inside his Honda CRV.

He will not spend much, or any, time in jail, because that would be unfair. Or something.

But at least concealed carry is becoming more of a thing in Chicago.

The Collapse of the Downtown Office Model

One thing COVID did was prove that a lot of people don't need to work in the same location, to work together. Zoom, and the competing products have made remote work a possibility for a lot of people. That is destroying the market for the downtown office building. Rampant crime and homelessness isn't helping, either. Downtown Chicago Office Building Heads to Auction, $1M Opening Bid

The building highlighted in the article is at 216 West Jackson Boulevard. For those of you not familiar with Chicago, that is pretty much in the heart of The Loop. It is about half a block from Willis Tower, formerly Sears Tower, and a few blocks from the Federal Courthouse. It would be a long walk to City Hall in this weather, but not too bad in the spring or early summer.

The vintage 10-story office building at 216 West Jackson Boulevard will be up for grabs starting Feb. 20, with an opening bid of $1 million, Crain’s reported. Farbman Group brokers Bill Bubniak and Todd Szymczak are marketing the property, and Ten-X will handle the auction.

The opening bid equates to a little over $5 per square foot.

The building sold in 2013 for $120 per square foot, or just north of $22 million.

The hat tip goes to Second City Cop: The Quiet Collapse. SCC highlights a couple of other articles, but they are behind a paywall at Crain's Chicago Business. They are about other properties downtown, with similar declines in value.

Sure looks like downtown is hurting what with the looting, continually boarded up building fronts, restaurants going out of business and retail shops fleeing.

While SCC is focused on Chicago, this is not a Chicago only phenomenon. Batten down the hatches, a financial hurricane is on the way. (This is also via the SCC post.)

In the US, vast swathes of office space are empty. The landlords have some brutal decisions to make as $117billion is due in financial payments this year for commercial property. If the landlords cannot re-negotiate their loans, they go bankrupt, dumping property on the banks, which in turn will have to face their loan portfolios going delinquent. Which could of course cause them bankruptcy.

The article linked at the top, Second City Cop's posting, and the article above, from The Conservative Woman, are all worth a look. They won't make you happy.

Classical Gas

"Classical Gas" is a song originally by Mason Williams. First recorded in 1968, he recorded it numerous times, including one time with the group Mannheim Steamroller. The version with which I am most familiar was recorded by Hugo Montenegro and his orchestra in 1970.

The version we have to is by Australian Tommy Emmanuel. Since most people don't know who he is, I will only say that he is a wonderful acoustic guitar player. Chet Atkins called his playing "fearless," and Chet would know, being a great guitar player himself.

This song is "Classical Gas" as performed by Tommy Emmanuel. I'm not sure when this was recorded, but it was uploaded to YouTube in 2011. Tommy Emmanuel has included this song in his live performances for a long time.

There is an interview with Rick Beato in which Tommy Emmanuel explains how to take a song like "Classical Gas," which has been recorded and interpreted many times, and make it your own.

Tuesday Links - 23 January

Tam at View from the Porch starts us off with a cautionary look at predictions for the future from April, 2001. Be Wary of Predictions...

If a butterfly flaps its wings just a bit harder or softer, the downstream effects are nigh unpredictable.

Dana Pico at First Street Journal - Homeless People Are Dangerous

Really, don’t you have to be a bit nuts to pull out a knife and start stabbing someone else?

The Truth About Guns - What Does a Gender Studies Degree From the University of IL Get You? Probation After Being Held At Gunpoint by CCW Holder During Hot Burglary

Meet Tyler Hamlin. He graduated from the University of Illinois (my alma mater) with a Gender Studies degree. Where has that degree taken him? Well, the homeless (first clue) and unemployed (clue #2) Tyler Hamlin, 31, was confronted by a CCW homeowner while burglarizing the guy’s garage in Chicago a while back.

The Other McCain - Democrats: ‘Our Voters Are Too Stupid to Understand How Awesome Joe Biden Is’

If I were to accuse black people of being this stupid, it would be racist. But it’s not me that’s saying this, it’s Democrats saying it.

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 20 January 2024: World Of Pals Edition

Palworld, an independent game that can be best described as Pokemon with guns allowed a handful of vtubers a preview the past few days.

Seems to have paid off because they sold a million copies in eight hours and reached half a million concurrent players in the first 24 hours - and it's still in pre-release. (Kotaku)

In case you're wondering, yes, those sheep have Browning M2s.

Again from The Other McCain - No More Statues of White Men?

Wait a minute — in order to renovate a park in downtown Philadelphia, the feds are required by law to consult tribes that live in Oklahoma? What the actual fuck is going on here? Personally, I have no grievance with the Shawnees, but can somebody explain to me why they should be given a de facto veto over these park plans?

Tom Knighton at Bearing Arms - Anti-Gunners Freaking Out Over NRA Essay Contest

Everything raises alarms for gun control advocates. They’re the most easily alarmed people on the planet, particularly if the NRA does literally anything.

It’s funny, too, because they routinely bemoan the NRA stepping away from its supposed roots in educating people and engaging in lobbying efforts, but when they do education, they freak out even more.

Meep at Stump - Academia - Credentialism vs. Education

I talk about the distinction between education and credentials, and my preference for separating the two.

The Other McCain again - Democratic Socialists of America Now Planning Layoffs Amid Financial ‘Crisis’

What? You’re telling me that socialists are not good at managing finances and budgets? I’m shocked — shocked! — by this revelation.

Don't Bring a Chainsaw to a Gunfight

Strangely enough, that is not the first time I've used that title for a post about self-defense. Beale Street homeowner shoots, kills man wielding chainsaw, court docs say

Through investigation with witnesses, including neighbors, it was established that the homeowner and his wife were getting ready to enter their house when they received an alarm from their security system.

Court documents say that the homeowner asked his wife to remain in their car when he approached the rear gate of their property. That’s when Davis is said to have moved toward the homeowner while holding a chainsaw above his shoulders. The homeowner advised that when Davis approached him, he feared he would be seriously injured or die.

The homeowner shot chainsaw-guy one time. He died at a local hospital.

The St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office says that because it cannot disprove that the shooting of Mr. Davis constituted as a justifiable homicide, no such criminal charges will be filed in connection to his death.

St. Joesph County, Indiana is in the northern part of the state, on the Michigan state line. It is home to South Bend, and the University of Notre Dame. I've had a couple of posts on self-defense in that county, and the wording from the Prosecutor' office is always the same. I always think it sounds like, "We can't win in court, as much as we would like to make self-defense illegal." Maybe I am reading too much into the statment. (Hat tip to The Blaze.)